[hiccamups]

I spend $250/fortnight at the most, that's all there is, if we run out of something then we make do without it until the next fortnight. Right now I am almost out of cheese & eggs and completly out of cooking oil (not something I use often anyway).

That blows my mind. Even when we don't buy organic everything, there is NO way we could live off $125 a week.

But we don't buy much packaged/processed food, so you'd think that'd help. But I'd say around $300 per week.

This is the same for us. You'd think making everything yourself would help but actually, we spend far less if we buy processed foods. Fresh food is not so cheap when you can buy a sachet meal for $2.95 and bang it with rice.

This post has been edited by *howls*: 06/05/2012, 05:52 PM

[nobleme]

We spend about $700 a month. So approx $175 a week. That includes fruit and veg, meat (I don't eat meat and everyone else doesn't eat a lot), and we don't need to buy Nappies or formula.
That's for 2 adults, 6yr, 5yr, 3yr and 2 yr.

I think I may up it $200 a week soon. The boys are starting to get an appetite

[mum2five]

2 adults and 5 kids ( 3 moving into the teen years).

I have never tallied up what we spend at the store on groceries. I think I would be too scared. I don't have time to 'specials' shop so I tend to grab everything I need in the one store - the fresh food people We eat a lot of chicken, heart smart mince and some steak. Fresh fish rarely as I need to go to another store to get it as the supermarket doesn't have a 'fresh' seafood section. I let the kids buy whatever fruit they want. Breakfast cereals I buy on special. I am conscious of what I am purchasing so we have enough to create meals throughout the week but at the same time I am a little blasé with cost: if we want to eat that I will buy it.

We can easily spend about $300 and then do a $100 + $50 top up shop in one week. When two loaves of bread go in one day it is no wonder we are always buying groceries. Dh will sometimes stop to pick up milk and bread but end up spending $50 on other stuff too.

We tried using Farmers Direct and while it was handy having it delivered we could never judge how bread/milk the kids would go through so we would either have too much or be running to the store - which defeated the purpose of having it delivered.

[7girly-girls]

We have 8 kids - 19, 14, 12, 9, 8, 6, 2 & 11 months. Our weekly shop would be around $450. The little two dont each much of course but are in nappies, our oldest daughter is often out and only eats at home 50% of the time. Seven are girls so I think that makes a difference. I'm told boys eat more than girls, particularly teens.

[Mellbo81]

I have a family of 7...5 kids ranging from 11 down to 6mths. I spend around $250 a week including formula and nappies but would easily spend another $100-$150 a week on fresh fruit, veg, bread and milk.

[mummy+8]

hi there. this is the first time i have had anything to say here. i have eight beautiful kids, girls 17 and 12 and boys 15, 10, 6, 4, 2 and 5 months. my grocery bill is usually around $300 at ht ebig shop and then at least another $50 to $100 throughout the week for bread etc. our biggest costs are milk, toilet paper and apples. this amount includes nappies for 2 and formula as well as pet food etc. i have tried a number of times to get it below this but am now happy if it stays below $350. the only upside is the amount of flybuys points i get.

[Flibbertigibbert...]

That blows my mind. Even when we don't buy organic everything, there is NO way we could live off $125 a week.



This is the same for us. You'd think making everything yourself would help but actually, we spend far less if we buy processed foods. Fresh food is not so cheap when you can buy a sachet meal for $2.95 and bang it with rice.

I find the same thing for good quality food, I like to buy locally grown or produced where possible, make it locally grown organic food and it costs a bomb. I have given up on trying to stick to a grocery budget for that reason. With 3 teen boys and a hyperactive 7yo DD, it is a case of quality over budget. I do tighten up in other areas to cover it, like phone and power.

[katbalou]

2 adults & 3 kids here. Kids are 9yrs, 6yrs & 3yrs...9yr old eats as much as I do, sometimes more LOL

I spend $250/fortnight at the most, that's all there is, if we run out of something then we make do without it until the next fortnight. Right now I am almost out of cheese & eggs and completly out of cooking oil (not something I use often anyway).

My main grocery shop each fortnight is around $200, sometimes less. The other $50 is there to top up on fresh bread, milk, fruit & vege as needed, I don't have the space to store a full fortnights worth of that stuff.

I bake from scratch.
The closest to a jar/packet mix is the $1.30 jar of pasta sauce from Aldi (that's my one lazy night meal a fortnight), or a sachet of taco/burrito seasoning.
I don't meal plan before I shop, instead I make sure I always have the basics in the pantry/fridge and I meal plan according to what meat/vege are on special as I shop.
I buy a couple of roasts a fortnight, they are a cheap way to cover a couple of dinners or dinner & a few lunches.
We have lots of veges with dinner, often have salad with lunch and a couple of pieces of fruit each every day.

This is me to a 't', even down to the $1.30 jar of pasta sauce from Aldi. That's about how much we spend (initially about $200 for the main shop, and $50 top-up for veges etc). Same number and approx. ages of kids. If we run out, we run out (unless it's an absolute staple like bread or milk or veg). If it wasn't for Aldi, we'd be stuffed. It's great for stuff like crackers, cereal, cheese ($6.70 for kg of tasty), and butter which my 3 boys devour daily. I get the 1 kg bags of frozen basa for $7 which the kids love. I would prefer to buy Australian fish, but I can't afford it.

I'm vegetarian - but I make home-made chicken nuggets, chicken rissoles, spag bol etc, and my own vege patties out of just about anything.

[fairyflossfart]

For 3 adults, 1 teen and one 8yr old we spend $400 some months and $500 -$600 every 2 or 3 months when we stock up on dog food and meat and a few other things.
DD18 spends about $20/week on food for work. She has been into the salads with avocado and shredded chicken meat etc. as she needs to eat a little differently now she works 8 or 9hrs a day and then trains twice a week etc.

[KristyMum-]

6 here. Well, 2 adults, 4 children (one who eats all the time and he's 3 lol) and 5 chooks.

We were at about $150 a week but I've done a 5 week menu plan and am tracking spending just to see what is now. So far so good.

eta that's bulk dry goods, usually a bulk organic beef delivery, local grocer f&v, almost zero commercial cleaning products, Diva/Lunette, reusable nappies (now tt though), washable wipes, eco/organic where we can etc I make from scratch a fair bit and we bake a lot. We're upping what we can produce in f&v in the garden and the girls were laying 6 eggs a day (they're older now and we've lost a couple so it's nowhere near that amount any more).

Commercial cleaning products and disposable products can make a huge difference to a shopping bill.

This post has been edited by KristyMum-: 12/05/2012, 01:25 AM