What's your food budget like?

[CephasGT]

I was just running some budget analyses from data over the past six months for us. Over the past couple years, we've started making a pretty strong effort to buy local/natural/organic/small company foodstuffs whenever and wherever possible, for a variety of reasons. But not gonna lie, while I like the health benefits and positive impact the movement is having on the food industry, it's not good for the bottom line.

Two working adults, no kids, and we're averaging over $900/month on things we put in our mouths (groceries and dining out, though we do the latter very moderately).

We're spending a little over twice the national average percentage of our income on food.

So what's the food budget like for all of your households? Are we going a little too crazy here?

[TheBrown57]

$40-60 a month for just me, that's just groceries I try not to eat out often but if I included that I would say $100-120. My dog eats better than me

[gen3flygirl]

I am now spending more on beer than food. Stupid world of beer had to open right by my work.

[Tomcat0403]

HOLY SHIT $900 a month!

[bowdog]

My old lady has a grocery store shopping addiction, if every space in the kitchen is not filled i think she feels insecure? We average about $450 every two weeks, do we really eat that much, hell no!! Oh yea and its just the two of us. To here defense she does always make a bunch of stuff when we have company "just incase" someone is hungry!

[magley64]

Hard to say, Only been shopping once since we got the house...

$75 for that trip, but included several condiments and stuff we wouldn't need to buy very often.

I figured on $300/month.. so we'll see if we actually hit that target.

[Disclaimer]

$900 is $30/day for all of you to eat... you think you could 1/2 that by buying "normal" people food? Save $450/mo... or a lease on a Mercedes-worth of money.

How much perspective do you want? I mean, the best way for you is probably to try 3 months worth of buying "cheap junk" food and see what those costs are, and then figure out if the additional spending on the local organic stuff is worth the moral highroad and how your body actually feels compared to eating the slop the rest of us eat. If you could actually tie the additional spending on 'good' food to reduced spending on other health areas (healthier checkups, reduced risk of diabetes, etc), then you'll see hard numbers. The problem there is no one ever accounts for what diabetes costs because they never plan on getting it... so, cost avoidance isn't counted as a 'savings' because people doesn't usually view it from that perspective. And then after buying all this 'good' food, you still get diabetes or some other disease (like cancer) from the pesticides and things used on organic food, then it's a REAL kick in the organic nuts from a cost perspective.

So, is organic food a good value? For some people it is, for others' it's not. But, you're looking at short term costs against long term savings.

Edited November 26, 2012 by JRMMiii

[jbot]

i can't wait til my wife gets preggers. i can replace at least 1 to 2 meals a day with sumptuous boobie milk

[madcat6183]

i can't wait til my wife gets preggers. i can replace at least 1 to 2 meals a day with sumptuous boobie milk

Wow.... jsut wow.

We each spend 25-35 a week on groceries, eat out 2-4 times total between lunches and dinner. I'd guess that puts us about 450 total for both of us in a month max. That's with organic meats, brown eggs, etc. But she is a vegetarian and I eat pretty lame I'd say.

[magley64]

i can't wait til my wife gets preggers. i can replace at least 1 to 2 meals a day with sumptuous boobie milk

all milk is boobie milk....unless it's soy or coconut...(which isn't really milk)

[TRMN8TR]

But all milk isn't drank directly from said sumptuous boobies.

Dairy milk would be so much better if I could suck it straight from the cow's teat.

[jester3681]

We buy food at Kroger, Trader Joe's and Target. Two (and a half times two) adults, two (and a half kids) - my mother in law, sister in law and nephew stay with us three days a week. I'd say we spend $450-550 between the three, but the bulk is spent at Kroger - $300+/- a month. We might eat out three times, but usually it's pizza - $20 or less. We try to eat relatively healthy and buy a lot of fresh produce and prepare most of our meals from scratch.

When we were first married, we shopped almost exclusively at Trader Joe's and spent about the same, but there were only two of us. I bet we ate out once a week, too, plus I went out with the guys every Wednesday night. I'd say all in we were over $1000 a month.

[C-bus]

2 adults + 3 kids 12 and under.... about $1000/ month.

1) Kids pack their lunches.

2) we're milk snobs.... Snowville only... 4 gallons/week

3) we're meat snobs... free range, grass fed yadda yadda yadda.

4) I like food

[Earache]

Wife and no kids, we eat out for every single meal. But normally only eat once a day.

Average tab at a restaurant, with drinks, tip, is pretty close to $50 per trip.

So that's around $1,500 per month. Maybe a b it more on weekends (more beers).

[Gump]

Wow...some of these estimates are nuts. Maybe a hundred on lunch per month and $50 on groceries.

Edited November 26, 2012 by Gump

[madcat6183]

It's weird because months with Subway 5.00 footlongs, even 6.00 I eat there probably 4 times a week at least, and I feel like I save money that month, but I can't eat anywhere else for that price really, without eating total sh*t.

I refuse to eat junk every meal, I like to cook good meats, pasta's, etc. I guess the wife eats the same thing everyday, fiber bar for breakfast, veggie burger and 2 cups veggies for lunch, then a 1.00 bag of rice cakes a day, and some crackers and cheese. She eats pasta or a veggie burger for dinner too. She probably costs 5.50 a day or less unless we eat out. She never goes to lunch through the week, maybe 2 times a month if they get pizza. So she totals like 165-175 a month.

I eat 6-8oz meat twice a day, 2 cups of veggies through the day, and a yougart for breakfast. I think that means I get 2-3 servings per ground chicken which is like 6.00 for the free range, etc. or 5.00 for the beef same style. So 3 things of that a week and then the 2.50 veggies = 4 servings twice a week, or I add rice too sometimes, which I buy in bulk. So yeah, I bet I am about the same, then I eat out 1-2 lunches a week, so probably just a tad more, 185ish.

Beer is getting expensive though lately.

[Tigerpaw]

People's numbers are all over the place. I think some are accounting for only food, and others for the whole bill at WalMart(i.e. toiletries, dog food, incidentals, random items...).

I think $900/month is a little high for organic/healthy, but not outrageous. Your health is worth the price. I would check out Co-ops though.

[blue03636]

I eat 6-8oz meat twice a day

We all know this is a low number. I know you put more meat in your mouth than that every day.

[dustinsn3485]

I am now spending more on beer than food.

This is me. Total edible bill for me per month...At least $400 closer to 500 most months. 140 at the grocery and 60-80 on fast food. The rest is beer and a bit of food at the bars to go with the beer.

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[Gixxus Christ!]

My fiance and I shop weekly and spend about $120 each trip. No kids, 2 cats, a big dog and a sprite zero addiction. In addition we go out every Saturday and drop $50 or so on dinner and another $50 or so at the bar. Sunday usually begins with a $17 breakfast out, as neither of us feel like cooking. So between Saturday night and Sunday afternoon we drop about $240 on food and drinks. We don't eat cheap processed crap, I'm a diabetic so I can't eat a lot of the cheaper starch rich foods out there...I also treat myself to one ~$12 steak a week, which I cook at work on a foreman.

[CephasGT]

Our number does include a small amount of incidentals, but not much. Since we grocery shop mainly at places like Dorothy Lane Market, Earth Fare and the Commissary (surprisingly large organic selection there), most of our incidentals don't interact with the grocery shopping.

Plus my estimate is based only off our "daily use" credit card, so it doesn't count cash food expenditures. I figure the cash/incidental trade off is basically a wash.

But I can say that our food bill is still less than the mortgage, so that's something...

[Pokey]

Married with just our soon to be 17 year old son, and we eat out probably 3 times per week.. I would say close to $125 per week eating out, and roughly $600 per month in groceries. And I am staying away from World of Beers for as long as I can, my exquisite beer preference is not cheap.

[Pokey]

Our number does include a small amount of incidentals, but not much. Since we grocery shop mainly at places like Dorothy Lane Market, Earth Fare and the Commissary (surprisingly large organic selection there), most of our incidentals don't interact with the grocery shopping.

Plus my estimate is based only off our "daily use" credit card, so it doesn't count cash food expenditures. I figure the cash/incidental trade off is basically a wash.

But I can say that our food bill is still less than the mortgage, so that's something...

Might consider saving your money on not buying organic, typically no real "true" benefits over non organic, it just makes you feel like it does. Now when it comes to meat and eggs I would much prefer as all natural as I can get, but fruit and veggies I don't even consider.

[jester3681]

Might consider saving your money on not buying organic, typically no real "true" benefits over non organic, it just makes you feel like it does. Now when it comes to meat and eggs I would much prefer as all natural as I can get, but fruit and veggies I don't even consider.

I would say there is a better benefit from cooking your own foods than from buying organic pre-packaged stuff. We also try to shop at Farmer's markets and the like when we can.

[Gixxus Christ!]

I grow my own peppers, tomatoes and onions in the summer, helps a little with the bills.