What percentage of your income do you spend on food?

[MoseyingAlong]

We do have a couple of sources of free food... Another is a family in our neighborhood who gathers slightly expired food (mostly produce and bread) that supermarkets were about to discard, hosts an outdoor food bank at a park for people experiencing food insecurity, and brings whatever's left to her porch for neighbors to take home (better than wasting it!)...

@seattlecyclone This sounds like a fantastic local project on many levels. Do you think she'd be willing to talk to someone about how she got started, set it up, etc.? I'd like to do something similar here.

[dividend]

Around £200/month for two of us - that includes cleaning products, vitamins, toiletries and alcohol. We eat well and cook from scratch 95% of the time.

Out of curiosity, what does a typical week look like on ~$70 USD? 

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[seattlecyclone]

We do have a couple of sources of free food... Another is a family in our neighborhood who gathers slightly expired food (mostly produce and bread) that supermarkets were about to discard, hosts an outdoor food bank at a park for people experiencing food insecurity, and brings whatever's left to her porch for neighbors to take home (better than wasting it!)...

@seattlecyclone This sounds like a fantastic local project on many levels. Do you think she'd be willing to talk to someone about how she got started, set it up, etc.? I'd like to do something similar here.

I believe they're affiliated with the Food not Bombs movement. They never market the leftovers that way to the neighbors (they put it on the neighborhood Buy Nothing Project group instead), but the outdoor food bank time/location does seem to match up with the FNB website. I agree it's such a good thing they do. Makes the community stronger.

[wageslave23]

I guess the reason I'm asking here is that I can't tell if I should be concerned.   I feel like like I don't have any frame of reference for what's reasonable.
And adding up that we spent $19,000 on food/drink in one year gave me pause.

Holy shit! You have a take-home income of ~$150k and only save 32% of it!? That is astoundingly bad...

Hahaha.  To be fair, in a hcol area it's decent.

It's still over 1500/month on food and drink for a household of 2.  The amount doesn't became reasonable simply because one's income is higher than average.

Yeah I meant saving 32%.  The food budget is just stupid no matter where you live

[Abe]

What’s your caloric intake per day? I’d be worried it’s too high if you’re spending that much, unless you’re spending a lot for higher-quality food.

[Metalcat]

What’s your caloric intake per day? I’d be worried it’s too high if you’re spending that much, unless you’re spending a lot for higher-quality food.

I'm guessing a decent proportion of it is restaurant meals and alcohol. It's very easy to spend that much with even semi regular consumption of $30 main dishes and $13 glasses of wine. Back when I spent that much, we were eating out probably once a week at least, and the bill was rarely under $150 after tax and tip. So that was minimum $600/mo alone. Then drinking a few bottles of $20-40 wine per week would be more hundreds, and that's before even buying any food at all.

[use2betrix]

Looks like last year we spent about $11k on groceries and $7k on restaurants. Just my wife and I. If we were FIRE’d we could easily cut that down by 2/3, but it’s enjoying while I spend so much time working.

We eat very healthy and very well. We also hosted people a fair share and I often pay for dinners when going out with friends who i’m quite confident make a small fraction of what I do.

When it’s just us and we go out to eat our bills are usually around $50-$90 total depending what we get, and drinks. Last weekend for example we went out for a friends birthday with a big group and I paid for the birthday’s meal as well as his wife (good friends).

We like doing short weekend trips to cities a few hours week, in which case we also like to eat at decent restaurants on those trips. When we visit family (parents) and go out to eat, I usually pay for their meals. They are now retired but my income is several times more than theirs has ever been.

Last year my take home income (wife doesn’t work) was about $320k and we live in a pretty LCOL area.

We spent a LOT last year (two new vehicles), however our total savings/investments grew $279k in 2020.

[tooqk4u22]

What’s your caloric intake per day? I’d be worried it’s too high if you’re spending that much, unless you’re spending a lot for higher-quality food.

I'm guessing a decent proportion of it is restaurant meals and alcohol. It's very easy to spend that much with even semi regular consumption of $30 main dishes and $13 glasses of wine. Back when I spent that much, we were eating out probably once a week at least, and the bill was rarely under $150 after tax and tip. So that was minimum $600/mo alone. Then drinking a few bottles of $20-40 wine per week would be more hundreds, and that's before even buying any food at all.

Ain't that the truth.  Even ignoring restaurants, some good wine and a nice bottle of bourbon (guilty) adds up quick.

[amberfocus]

Just chiming in on the more frugal end of the scale... We spend ~$200 per month on groceries, no alcohol, and rarely restaurants/takeout. We're vegetarian DINKs. Pre-FIRE, we bring in ~$250K, so as a percentage of income, that's in the 1% range. As a percentage of expenses, it's ~15%.

$19K is actually more than we spend on all of our expenses, but we're closer to ERE levels of spending than the typical Mustachian.

[keepingfocus]

Around £200/month for two of us - that includes cleaning products, vitamins, toiletries and alcohol. We eat well and cook from scratch 95% of the time.

Out of curiosity, what does a typical week look like on ~$70 USD? 

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Breakfasts are oatmeal & raisins or muesli, fruit & yoghurt, or something egg-based
Lunches - sandwiches or soup & homemade bread, leftovers depending on what we had the night before
Evening meals - usually enough made for 2-4 days at a time (chilli, pizza/pasta, roast chicken & vegetables, risotto)
Plenty of green salad, tomatoes, chilli peppers, root veg, lots of strong flavours and seasonings that can add a lot of taste for a small cost.
I tend to work to a cost per portion, the bigger batch meals can average <$1.50/adult portion

Most shopping done at Lidl (we used Sainsburys but found Lidl to be 35% cheaper with no discernible loss of quality).
We grow some herbs (rosemary, basil, oregano, thyme, chives, mint) and over the last couple of years have started to grow potatoes, onions, carrots, garlic, chillies, lettuce & tomatoes but at this stage not enough to make a significant dent in the budget,

Non-food buying is nearly all generic rather than brand. It fluctuates +- 15% month to month depending on what's on offer/what's needed. Not a lot of alcohol at all, barely more than cheap red wine for cooking. Takeaways maybe twice a year. Restaurants - nothing for the last year but we'd put that under entertainment rather than groceries.

We used to spend a lot more than this on food; habits were changed to facilitate getting out of debt.

[soccerluvof4]

we budget 900$ a month for food and all general home items like TP, PT, Cleaning supplies etc.. and about 250$ a month on fun stuff mostly since pandemic like carry out. 1150$ total a month on our 8500$ a month budget.

[Metalcat]

Around £200/month for two of us - that includes cleaning products, vitamins, toiletries and alcohol. We eat well and cook from scratch 95% of the time.

Out of curiosity, what does a typical week look like on ~$70 USD? 

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I know you aren't asking me, but that's basically our food budget if we didn't have Vega One for breakfast every day with yogurt, which adds about $150 to our groceries. It's been the only thing that keeps my iron up though, so it's worth the expense.

Breakfast: obviously Vega One with a lot of high fat yogurt

Lunch & Dinner: I batch cook from a selection of over 150 unbelievably delicious vegetarian meals, most of which are legume dishes, which is why they're tremendously inexpensive. I make a lot of Indian, African, middle Eastern, and Latin American dishes with tons of aromatic spices and fresh herbs. The average serving cost is just over $1.

If I prioritized dishes without cheese, and switched us to eggs for breakfast, I could feed us extremely well for about $35/week.

Our spending is inflated by high quality coffee for DH, high quality tea for me, and decent non-alcoholic beers, which are rather expensive. However, drinking alcohol was way more expensive.

We rarely eat at restaurants because I used to be a chef and don't think most restaurant food is worth eating, and definitely not worth paying for. It's usually way too reliant on overly salty sauces, which I consider lazy cooking. If we eat restaurant food, it's usually ethnic and typically something I can't (or won't) make at home: wood fired African BBQ, tajine, sushi, etc. I live in an area with a high concentration of inexpensive ethnic restaurants, so the cheap food options around here are amazing.

We're only vegetarians at home, we'll eat meat anywhere outside the house, so it's really a treat.

[Rosy]

We're foodies, so unless it suddenly becomes a problem due to income we buy and eat what we like.
I grow veggies and herbs and cook four times a week. One day a week we order out which could be $20 for pizza or a $75 dinner incl dessert.
Who cares - I am retired and I would find it alarming to suddenly account for food expenses.

I mean we use coupons, BOGOS, specials, the mark down-clearance items and enjoy the fruits and veggies from the garden incl herb teas. I'm a good cook and I make it my goal to cook meatless twice a week which is better for our health and serves to keep the costs down.
Sure we have lobster and blue crab sometimes or a fine cut of beef or smoked pork chops from an expensive but worth it online smokehouse.
In the end it evens out to a reasonable amount. I equate reasonable with affordable - the second it becomes no longer affordable it is no longer a reasonable expense and needs to be cut, end of story.

Alcohol, well, I spend less than I used to, but I do like variety in liqueurs and wine and we both like imported beers and local craft beers. We also indulge in  the occasional cocktail - monthly average $50.   

[Runrooster]

We're a family of 3 - adult and two seniors - and spend about $400/month in a VHCOL area.  The seniors eat limited amounts of meat, and I get about 2 meals a week brought in at work.  We cook almost everything from scratch, major exceptions being desserts and bread.  I like a lot of fruit and vegetables, but try to limit my buying to prices less than $2/pound.  I shop at the local Asian store, which has produce prices half that of the name-brand grocery stores.   I also stalk the clearance produce racks.  So I buy 27 mangos/$8 which last us for 2 weeks.  Another week they had guavas and persimmons so I bought 5 bag at 3 guavas/persimmons/$1.

My shopping philosophy comes from reading the Tightwad Gazette 25 years ago, who said to create a price list and then buy things at their lowest prices.  Buy enough to last between sales - so when eggs come down to $.60/doz, I buy 4 weeks worth to last until the next time they'll go on sale that cheap.  That also means buying produce when it's in season, cheapest but more importantly freshest and most flavorful.  So I've been eating asparagus at $1/lb for the last 3-4 weeks, and then I'll eat something else when it starts being expensive again.  I was mentioning this to my coworker, who said her husband just buys whatever he's in the mood to eat, without regard to price!  I would guess they're spending double what I do, still within their budget and mine, but I doubt the food tastes as good.

[mizzourah2006]

We spend about $7.5k/year on groceries and eating out for a family of 4.

[Metalcat]

So OP, I'm curious. Are you reading all of these posts and thinking "oh, cool, we're not the only ones who spend this much, I guess it's not that unusual afterall" or "man, some of these people spend so little, maybe we should see what changes we can make?" or something completely different?

[dividend]

So OP, I'm curious. Are you reading all of these posts and thinking "oh, cool, we're not the only ones who spend this much, I guess it's not that unusual afterall" or "man, some of these people spend so little, maybe we should see what changes we can make?" or something completely different?

Thanks for asking. 

I kind of wanted to get the numbers out of my own head and see how other people think about it. 
One of the takeaways is a reminder that "eating well" should certainly not be a reason for me to just spending whatever just because it's not a painful or impactful amount, given the number of people who do so for much less.  (In some cases vastly less.)

I've always met my savings goals (pay yourself first)  and had enough leftover that, especially now, I don't worry that much about optimizing at the grocery store.  Nailing the "big rocks" and putting savings/investments on autopilot theoretically should mean that discretionary spending should worry free.  But I wonder if I should care more about the details, if I've gotten complacent.  So I'm curious about other people's spending. 

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[afox]

agree the percentage of income spent on food is not a good measure of frugality. The whole point of MMM/FIRE is to NOT increase your spending as your income rises, thus the absolute amount is what matters not the percentage of income.

With a family of 2 adults, one toddler and one infant we are spending about $800 month on food including restaurants/takeout/booze.

Last week I found slightly expired starbucks coffee for $1.25 pound! That was an atypical score. Most of our groceries are from walmart, the prices are really good compared to the other grocery stores. We are vegetarian and dont eat a lot of processed/prepared food.

[Arbitrage]

I definitely don't tie my food spending to my income, so that percentage is somewhat immaterial - our family income has increased substantially over the last 5 years, but our food spending has decreased as I've gotten more efficient with my grocery shopping and we've switched to almost no restaurant food.  I suppose this has taken our percentage from perhaps 8% of gross income to about 2% of gross income for a family of 4.

Perhaps more interesting might be what percentage of our spending is food.  That number was around 10% for last year. 

[laserlady]

I spend about $100 per month on food. In my poor grad school days, I got by on about $50 a month for food, but that definitely required some compromises on quality and quantity. At $100 a month, I feel quite satisfied with my diet.

[Abe]

We're a family of 2 adults and 1 kid, don't shop anywhere fancy and eat mostly vegetables (maybe salmon or chicken once a week), yet it's hard to keep grocery/household perishable goods less than $800 a month. How do you all get by with $100-200/person/month?

[Metalcat]

We're a family of 2 adults and 1 kid, don't shop anywhere fancy and eat mostly vegetables (maybe salmon or chicken once a week), yet it's hard to keep grocery/household perishable goods less than $800 a month. How do you all get by with $100-200/person/month?

As I explained above, by primarily making meals where the bulk of the nutrients come from low cost ingredients.

So a meal of salmon and a chopped veggie salad of red peppers, tomatoes, avocados, cucumber and salad dressing will cost several times more than an African kidney bean curry with rice.

I put a lot of work into curating recipes with inexpensive core ingredients, which depend heavily on spices and cooking technique for flavour, like legumes and root vegetables, not expensive ingredients that taste great without much intervention, like meat, cheese, and avocados. This means I also don't have to shop for sales, because what I'm buying is pretty much always cheap.

Budget Bytes is a great resource for this.

[afox]

$100 per person for food per month is VERY inexpensive. I am amazed that one can eat for that little.

See if you can find a discount grocery store that specializes in expired food in your area. We have one that has expired/near expiration and other damaged and supermarket rejects and it is cheap!

Food banks are another good option, generally they dont ask for proof of anything and often they are getting rejected food that otherwise would have been thrown away.

[Dicey]

I don't keep track any more. I shop at Grocery Outlet (mostly on Senior Day for the extra 10% off), the 99 Cent Only Store, and Costco. I know my prices and I stock up when i find deals. I know it would cost a heck of a lot more if I shopped the "normal" way. Oh, and we don't drink, which saves a bunch o'money.

[amberfocus]

We're a family of 2 adults and 1 kid, don't shop anywhere fancy and eat mostly vegetables (maybe salmon or chicken once a week), yet it's hard to keep grocery/household perishable goods less than $800 a month. How do you all get by with $100-200/person/month?

As I explained above, by primarily making meals where the bulk of the nutrients come from low cost ingredients.

A 10 lb bag of potatoes costs $5. Dried beans cost a dollar per lb, and doubles in volume when cooked. A 5 lb bag of flour costs $1.15 at Aldi; that's 8000 calories worth of food right there when you convert it into bread. I don't know off the top of my head how much rice costs, but we have 20 lb sacks of basmati and jasmine rice in the pantry. For fruits and veg, we just shop weekly sales of seasonal produce at regular grocery stores and occasionally ethnic shops. There's no extreme couponing, no Costco/BJs, no clearance hacks, and we're not in a LCOL area, either.

You have to be willing/able to cook, and not be afraid of carbs. Lifestyle choices such as vegetarianism, not drinking alcohol, and being childfree helps (the SO's nieces/nephew won't touch anything that we eat; I honestly don't know how they're not dead from scurvy). But I don't think we can spend more than $300 per month for two adults if we tried.

[laserlady]

We're a family of 2 adults and 1 kid, don't shop anywhere fancy and eat mostly vegetables (maybe salmon or chicken once a week), yet it's hard to keep grocery/household perishable goods less than $800 a month. How do you all get by with $100-200/person/month?

Like Malcat, I rely on inexpensive core ingredients and cooking skills. I can buy a 10-pound bag of potatoes for $3 and use it as the basis for many delicious meals - baked potatoes, potato soup, curry, roasted chicken and potatoes, etc. Rice, beans, and lentils are cheap staples that can be prepared in various interesting ways. And there are all kinds of inexpensive breakfast choices that I enjoy - pancakes or waffles made from scratch, oatmeal, banana-oatmeal cookies (a recipe I found on this website, by the way), day-old bagels from the clearance section of the local grocery store, smoothies made from cheap fruits like bananas, and so forth.

My mom managed to feed two adults and seven children on about $150 per month back in the 1990s, so cooking good food on a small budget is a skill I developed very early on in life.

[LennStar]

We're a family of 2 adults and 1 kid, don't shop anywhere fancy and eat mostly vegetables (maybe salmon or chicken once a week), yet it's hard to keep grocery/household perishable goods less than $800 a month. How do you all get by with $100-200/person/month?

I don't even try to, it just happens ;) Habit is a big factor.

I admit that I don't like cooking and hate washing the dishes. I also admit that my diet isn't the most diverse. I like it simple ;)

For my warm meals, it mostly consists of a combination of rice or noodles, tomato(soup), sometimes meat, sometimes tofu, sometimes salmon, fish sticks, eggs and one or two frozen pizzas a week. Nothing fancy, which also saves on fancy ingredients.
 
In the evening it is mainly bread with cheese or Salami. Here it is important that I prefer a slice of cheese between two slices of bread, and not like others two slices of cheese/meat on one slice of bread. (Not the the mild cheeses I prefer are expensive, mind you.) Supermarket bread is cheap in Germany, and while the baker is double that, it is still cheaper than in other countries I think. If you wanted to live on bread and cheese, you could do that for 50€ a month.

An important point is that I only drink tap water. That not only saves you a lot of hassle, but also a lot of money, especially compared to soft drinks or alcoholic stuff. That's easily 50€ there compared to "normal" people! (Also a lot more healthy.)

[Tinker]

We're a family of 2 adults and 1 kid, don't shop anywhere fancy and eat mostly vegetables (maybe salmon or chicken once a week), yet it's hard to keep grocery/household perishable goods less than $800 a month. How do you all get by with $100-200/person/month?

Do your purchases tend to come with brand names or expensive labels* on them, or do you maybe just pick the wrong stores?

* Any codified label carries expensive added costs for bureaucratic nonsense with it. "organic" being one example. If you want organic, you're better off going to the local farmers market (and maybe asking them a few questions they should be happy to answer)

[Metalcat]

$100 per person for food per month is VERY inexpensive. I am amazed that one can eat for that little.

See if you can find a discount grocery store that specializes in expired food in your area. We have one that has expired/near expiration and other damaged and supermarket rejects and it is cheap!

Food banks are another good option, generally they dont ask for proof of anything and often they are getting rejected food that otherwise would have been thrown away.

What the hell?

This is absolutely not necessary for keeping a grocery bill under $100/person/mo.

Several of us have explained how this is not necessary. My grocery spending level doesn't even come from trying to be extremely frugal. I stopped cooking meat for ethical reasons, but I'm trained as a vegetarian chef and prefer ethnic dishes. It was only after I made the switch that I was like "HOLY SHIT! Our Fooding spending has dropped dramatically!"

As I said, I don't even shop any sales. Unless I see coconut milk on sale, then sometimes I'll stock up.

You don't need to lie to a food bank to have a low grocery bill, you just need to know how to handle dried beans.

[tooqk4u22]

$100 per person for food per month is VERY inexpensive. I am amazed that one can eat for that little.

See if you can find a discount grocery store that specializes in expired food in your area. We have one that has expired/near expiration and other damaged and supermarket rejects and it is cheap!

Food banks are another good option, generally they dont ask for proof of anything and often they are getting rejected food that otherwise would have been thrown away.

What the hell?

This is absolutely not necessary for keeping a grocery bill under $100/person/mo.

Several of us have explained how this is not necessary. My grocery spending level doesn't even come from trying to be extremely frugal. I stopped cooking meat for ethical reasons, but I'm trained as a vegetarian chef and prefer ethnic dishes. It was only after I made the switch that I was like "HOLY SHIT! Our Fooding spending has dropped dramatically!"

As I said, I don't even shop any sales. Unless I see coconut milk on sale, then sometimes I'll stock up.

You don't need to lie to a food bank to have a low grocery bill, you just need to know how to handle dried beans.

As I said my food spending is high, but I agree with this....mine could be a lot lot lot lower if I "had" or "wanted" to do this.  We mix it up but fo have plenty of cheap things we do.   Some of our cheapo and good regulars and there are many more.

Tikka masala made with garbanzo beans, side salad.  Sometimes throw in some bell pepper and Pineapple.   About $5 or $1/serving for us family of 5 and that is using canned garbanzo instead of dried.  Take away pepper and Pineapple and it is like $3

Sort of a porridge of rice, cream of chicken soup. 2 chix breasts diced, and side of green beans.   About $5.50 or $1.10/

Asian chix (2 breasts or 4 thighs) w broccoli ( a whole lot) over rice noodles...about $5 or $1/

But then I go and mess it up with a ribeye here and an ahi tuna there or a rack of Lamb over there.....$/person $5-10++++++. 

As I said before, Now our costs are higher for the next several years too bc of having two active teens and a tween they are just insatiable but it will pass.   And we could certainly offset this by going more cheapo meals.

[kite]

We do have a couple of sources of free food... Another is a family in our neighborhood who gathers slightly expired food (mostly produce and bread) that supermarkets were about to discard, hosts an outdoor food bank at a park for people experiencing food insecurity, and brings whatever's left to her porch for neighbors to take home (better than wasting it!)...

@seattlecyclone This sounds like a fantastic local project on many levels. Do you think she'd be willing to talk to someone about how she got started, set it up, etc.? I'd like to do something similar here.

I believe they're affiliated with the Food not Bombs movement. They never market the leftovers that way to the neighbors (they put it on the neighborhood Buy Nothing Project group instead), but the outdoor food bank time/location does seem to match up with the FNB website. I agree it's such a good thing they do. Makes the community stronger.

Check out Harvest Against Hunger.

In my state, a few of the farmers I know are part of Farmers Against Hunger.  Volunteer gleaners go through fields gathering up what missed the earlier harvest. They gather pounds of fresh produce that is then given away in pop-up farmer's markets in urban areas. It's a labor intensive logistics problem.

[APowers]

We're a family of 2 adults and 1 kid, don't shop anywhere fancy and eat mostly vegetables (maybe salmon or chicken once a week), yet it's hard to keep grocery/household perishable goods less than $800 a month. How do you all get by with $100-200/person/month?

$100 per person for food per month is VERY inexpensive. I am amazed that one can eat for that little.

See if you can find a discount grocery store that specializes in expired food in your area. We have one that has expired/near expiration and other damaged and supermarket rejects and it is cheap!

Food banks are another good option, generally they don't ask for proof of anything and often they are getting rejected food that otherwise would have been thrown away.

*sigh* I know this is more a perspective issue than anything else, but the "ZOMG! How can you possibly eat well on such a low grocery budget!!???!!???!!!!??" response still gets me every time. It's why I spent a year writing this thread on the forum here. Check it out if you want to see how I did <$50/person/month

$100/month per person for food is well beyond the range of "sufficient base level nutrition", especially if you are anywhere close to "not horrible" as a cook. You *don't* need to buy scratch/dent discounts (though those stores are great and you should shop there), and you *don't* need to get food from the food bank in order to get there.

@Abe -- if you want specific help with your grocery budget, you can start a case study with some more specific details about your particular situation and constraints. That would be a great thread that I'm sure lots of folks could benefit from. :)

[seattlecyclone]

Yes, @APowers has the low grocery spending down. His whole thread is worth a read if you want tips. I'm a bit more relaxed on grocery spend than he is, but still spend quite a bit less than many of you, so I decided to itemize my family dinner tonight just as an example. We have three adults in our house (me, wife, au pair) and two kids (ages 5 and almost-3).

MAIN COURSE:
* 89¢: 1 pound of fettuccine noodles. (Safeway brand)
* $1.99: Jar of alfredo sauce (Safeway brand). In reality this one was a freebie from Safeway's rewards program (spend $100 in a month and get a reward token that can be spent on various low-value foods or a 10¢/gallon gas discount), but I'll count it at full retail.
* $1.42: orange bell pepper (from a six-pack at Costco for $8.49)
* $1.00: 4.8 oz of organic mushrooms (from a 24-ounce package purchased at Costco for $4.99).
* $1.40: one Italian-style vegetarian sausage (from a $5.59 four-pack at Safeway)
* 59¢: half a can of black olives (eight-pack for $9.49 at Costco)

SIDES:
* 76¢: half pound of frozen organic green beans (bought in a 5-pound bag at Costco for $7.59).
* 12¢: tablespoon of butter on the beans ($3.99/pound at Safeway).
* $1 (roughly): salad. Perhaps a tenth of a pound of salad greens ($4.49 at Costco), plus a splash of salad dressing ($2 bottle), a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese ($2.49 for 6 oz at Safeway), and some black olives (already accounted for above).

DRINKS:
* $1.79: half a bottle of red wine (this particular wine was a gift, but we usually drink Costco box wine which costs $14.33 after tax for a four-bottle equivalent quantity)
* 33¢: A cup of milk for each kid ($5.29 for two gallons at Costco, and they probably didn't drink quite that much really).

That's dinner for five for $11.29, and perhaps a third of it went back in the fridge as leftovers. Last night I made a Thai green curry with tofu, veggies, and rice for a similar cost. There were leftovers then too; the leftovers from the past two nights might cover dinner tomorrow if people don't eat much of it for lunch in the meantime.

[Abe]

Yeah I think we’re including non-food cost also in our $800. That’s very similar to what we eat @seattlecyclone, thanks for posting that.

[amberfocus]

$100 per person for food per month is VERY inexpensive. I am amazed that one can eat for that little.

See if you can find a discount grocery store that specializes in expired food in your area. We have one that has expired/near expiration and other damaged and supermarket rejects and it is cheap!

Food banks are another good option, generally they dont ask for proof of anything and often they are getting rejected food that otherwise would have been thrown away.

What the hell?

This is absolutely not necessary for keeping a grocery bill under $100/person/mo.

[snip]

You don't need to lie to a food bank to have a low grocery bill, you just need to know how to handle dried beans.

Thanks for calling that out, Malcat. I felt super squick reading the food pantry suggestion, but chickened out of addressing it directly because I felt bad about outright shaming the poster if they genuinely thought they were being helpful. But yeah... my interactions with food banks have only gone in the opposite direction (and I don't give them 'rejected' food, either; they have lists of items that they want and we'd shop specifically for those).

[kite]

$100 per person for food per month is VERY inexpensive. I am amazed that one can eat for that little.

See if you can find a discount grocery store that specializes in expired food in your area. We have one that has expired/near expiration and other damaged and supermarket rejects and it is cheap!

Food banks are another good option, generally they dont ask for proof of anything and often they are getting rejected food that otherwise would have been thrown away.

What the hell?

This is absolutely not necessary for keeping a grocery bill under $100/person/mo.

[snip]

You don't need to lie to a food bank to have a low grocery bill, you just need to know how to handle dried beans.

Thanks for calling that out, Malcat. I felt super squick reading the food pantry suggestion, but chickened out of addressing it directly because I felt bad about outright shaming the poster if they genuinely thought they were being helpful. But yeah... my interactions with food banks have only gone in the opposite direction (and I don't give them 'rejected' food, either; they have lists of items that they want and we'd shop specifically for those).

It's good you curbed any instinct to shame.  You don't need to feel super squick, either. Foodbanks aren't asking for proof, so nobody is lying to them.
If this past year has taught us anything, it should be that people who once had everything can very quickly have nothing. If you've never needed to rely on a foodbank to keep your kids from going to bed hungry, count yourself lucky.

There are millions whose income from 2019 disqualified them from getting SNAP benefits when the SHTF in 2020. 

I'm related to one.  She was shopper at Whole Foods, bagging groceries for curbside pick-up making $18/hour.  She was hospitalized in May and then fired for missing work when she was in the hospital. Her Unemployment Insurance claim was rejected because they said she was fired for cause. She had no money coming in during the appeals that dragged on for several months.  Her mortgage company gave her a forbearance but her Condo Association didn't, and the association dues & late fees are racking up a gigantic debt that includes legal fees for the association's attorney.  Of course that's when the water heater broke, the stove died and a problem with the AC meant she couldn't run that all summer.

The last thing anyone in desperate circumstances needs is to be shamed or asked to prove how empty their cupboards are.  There are people like my loved one who were perfectly fine one year ago. There are plenty who are undocumented or suffering in ways that aren't readily apparent. 

[Metalcat]

$100 per person for food per month is VERY inexpensive. I am amazed that one can eat for that little.

See if you can find a discount grocery store that specializes in expired food in your area. We have one that has expired/near expiration and other damaged and supermarket rejects and it is cheap!

Food banks are another good option, generally they dont ask for proof of anything and often they are getting rejected food that otherwise would have been thrown away.

What the hell?

This is absolutely not necessary for keeping a grocery bill under $100/person/mo.

[snip]

You don't need to lie to a food bank to have a low grocery bill, you just need to know how to handle dried beans.

Thanks for calling that out, Malcat. I felt super squick reading the food pantry suggestion, but chickened out of addressing it directly because I felt bad about outright shaming the poster if they genuinely thought they were being helpful. But yeah... my interactions with food banks have only gone in the opposite direction (and I don't give them 'rejected' food, either; they have lists of items that they want and we'd shop specifically for those).

It's good you curbed any instinct to shame.  You don't need to feel super squick, either. Foodbanks aren't asking for proof, so nobody is lying to them.
If this past year has taught us anything, it should be that people who once had everything can very quickly have nothing. If you've never needed to rely on a foodbank to keep your kids from going to bed hungry, count yourself lucky.

There are millions whose income from 2019 disqualified them from getting SNAP benefits when the SHTF in 2020. 

I'm related to one.  She was shopper at Whole Foods, bagging groceries for curbside pick-up making $18/hour.  She was hospitalized in May and then fired for missing work when she was in the hospital. Her Unemployment Insurance claim was rejected because they said she was fired for cause. She had no money coming in during the appeals that dragged on for several months.  Her mortgage company gave her a forbearance but her Condo Association didn't, and the association dues & late fees are racking up a gigantic debt that includes legal fees for the association's attorney.  Of course that's when the water heater broke, the stove died and a problem with the AC meant she couldn't run that all summer.

The last thing anyone in desperate circumstances needs is to be shamed or asked to prove how empty their cupboards are.  There are people like my loved one who were perfectly fine one year ago. There are plenty who are undocumented or suffering in ways that aren't readily apparent.

No one is shaming anyone for needing a food bank!

This thread is specifically in the context of someone high income talking about food spending, and pp came in saying that less than $100/person/mo was basically so unrealistic that someone would have to resort to using food banks. They were the ones who said that the food banks don't check anything, which to me, implied that even someone with enough money could use them if they wanted to lower their spending.

If I misinterpreted, then fine, pp can correct me, but my response was to point out that no one who has means should be using a food bank to lower their food bill, even if they can get away with it. I was NOT saying that food banks should be somehow checking if people need them, they shouldn't have to, because no decent person who can readily afford groceries should be abusing food banks.

[Cranky]

However, if your school system is offering free food for kids, they probably benefit from having more people sign up.

[kite]

$100 per person for food per month is VERY inexpensive. I am amazed that one can eat for that little.

See if you can find a discount grocery store that specializes in expired food in your area. We have one that has expired/near expiration and other damaged and supermarket rejects and it is cheap!

Food banks are another good option, generally they dont ask for proof of anything and often they are getting rejected food that otherwise would have been thrown away.

What the hell?

This is absolutely not necessary for keeping a grocery bill under $100/person/mo.

[snip]

You don't need to lie to a food bank to have a low grocery bill, you just need to know how to handle dried beans.

Thanks for calling that out, Malcat. I felt super squick reading the food pantry suggestion, but chickened out of addressing it directly because I felt bad about outright shaming the poster if they genuinely thought they were being helpful. But yeah... my interactions with food banks have only gone in the opposite direction (and I don't give them 'rejected' food, either; they have lists of items that they want and we'd shop specifically for those).

It's good you curbed any instinct to shame.  You don't need to feel super squick, either. Foodbanks aren't asking for proof, so nobody is lying to them.
If this past year has taught us anything, it should be that people who once had everything can very quickly have nothing. If you've never needed to rely on a foodbank to keep your kids from going to bed hungry, count yourself lucky.

There are millions whose income from 2019 disqualified them from getting SNAP benefits when the SHTF in 2020. 

I'm related to one.  She was shopper at Whole Foods, bagging groceries for curbside pick-up making $18/hour.  She was hospitalized in May and then fired for missing work when she was in the hospital. Her Unemployment Insurance claim was rejected because they said she was fired for cause. She had no money coming in during the appeals that dragged on for several months.  Her mortgage company gave her a forbearance but her Condo Association didn't, and the association dues & late fees are racking up a gigantic debt that includes legal fees for the association's attorney.  Of course that's when the water heater broke, the stove died and a problem with the AC meant she couldn't run that all summer.

The last thing anyone in desperate circumstances needs is to be shamed or asked to prove how empty their cupboards are.  There are people like my loved one who were perfectly fine one year ago. There are plenty who are undocumented or suffering in ways that aren't readily apparent.

No one is shaming anyone for needing a food bank!

This thread is specifically in the context of someone high income talking about food spending, and pp came in saying that less than $100/person/mo was basically so unrealistic that someone would have to resort to using food banks. They were the ones who said that the food banks don't check anything, which to me, implied that even someone with enough money could use them if they wanted to lower their spending.

If I misinterpreted, then fine, pp can correct me, but my response was to point out that no one who has means should be using a food bank to lower their food bill, even if they can get away with it. I was NOT saying that food banks should be somehow checking if people need them, they shouldn't have to, because no decent person who can readily afford groceries should be abusing food banks.

OP appears to have a high income. Not everyone commenting here does.  Some who did have high incomes lost those high incomes in the last 12 months.
I don't operate from a perspective that anyone using a food bank is abusing a food bank.
I volunteer at the NYC Foodbank in Harlem.  Everyone who shows up when we are serving gets served a meal. Many are homeless. Many have homes and jobs and yet their expenses (or addictions) leave them with not enough money for food.  Still, we serve.
I was specifically responding to the response to your comment.  And I get that person's perspective.  It's human nature. It's instinct to want to weigh in when it looks like someone is undeserving of a hand-out.

[Metalcat]

$100 per person for food per month is VERY inexpensive. I am amazed that one can eat for that little.

See if you can find a discount grocery store that specializes in expired food in your area. We have one that has expired/near expiration and other damaged and supermarket rejects and it is cheap!

Food banks are another good option, generally they dont ask for proof of anything and often they are getting rejected food that otherwise would have been thrown away.

What the hell?

This is absolutely not necessary for keeping a grocery bill under $100/person/mo.

[snip]

You don't need to lie to a food bank to have a low grocery bill, you just need to know how to handle dried beans.

Thanks for calling that out, Malcat. I felt super squick reading the food pantry suggestion, but chickened out of addressing it directly because I felt bad about outright shaming the poster if they genuinely thought they were being helpful. But yeah... my interactions with food banks have only gone in the opposite direction (and I don't give them 'rejected' food, either; they have lists of items that they want and we'd shop specifically for those).

It's good you curbed any instinct to shame.  You don't need to feel super squick, either. Foodbanks aren't asking for proof, so nobody is lying to them.
If this past year has taught us anything, it should be that people who once had everything can very quickly have nothing. If you've never needed to rely on a foodbank to keep your kids from going to bed hungry, count yourself lucky.

There are millions whose income from 2019 disqualified them from getting SNAP benefits when the SHTF in 2020. 

I'm related to one.  She was shopper at Whole Foods, bagging groceries for curbside pick-up making $18/hour.  She was hospitalized in May and then fired for missing work when she was in the hospital. Her Unemployment Insurance claim was rejected because they said she was fired for cause. She had no money coming in during the appeals that dragged on for several months.  Her mortgage company gave her a forbearance but her Condo Association didn't, and the association dues & late fees are racking up a gigantic debt that includes legal fees for the association's attorney.  Of course that's when the water heater broke, the stove died and a problem with the AC meant she couldn't run that all summer.

The last thing anyone in desperate circumstances needs is to be shamed or asked to prove how empty their cupboards are.  There are people like my loved one who were perfectly fine one year ago. There are plenty who are undocumented or suffering in ways that aren't readily apparent.

No one is shaming anyone for needing a food bank!

This thread is specifically in the context of someone high income talking about food spending, and pp came in saying that less than $100/person/mo was basically so unrealistic that someone would have to resort to using food banks. They were the ones who said that the food banks don't check anything, which to me, implied that even someone with enough money could use them if they wanted to lower their spending.

If I misinterpreted, then fine, pp can correct me, but my response was to point out that no one who has means should be using a food bank to lower their food bill, even if they can get away with it. I was NOT saying that food banks should be somehow checking if people need them, they shouldn't have to, because no decent person who can readily afford groceries should be abusing food banks.

OP appears to have a high income. Not everyone commenting here does.  Some who did have high incomes lost those high incomes in the last 12 months.
I don't operate from a perspective that anyone using a food bank is abusing a food bank.
I volunteer at the NYC Foodbank in Harlem.  Everyone who shows up when we are serving gets served a meal. Many are homeless. Many have homes and jobs and yet their expenses (or addictions) leave them with not enough money for food.  Still, we serve.
I was specifically responding to the response to your comment.  And I get that person's perspective.  It's human nature. It's instinct to want to weigh in when it looks like someone is undeserving of a hand-out.

Yeah, I've volunteered at food banks, soup kitchens, and homeless shelters pretty much my entire life. I don't judge anyone for needing those services.

I would ABSOLUTELY judge someone who abuses those services and doesn't actually need them though, which seemed to be what the previous poster was suggesting was necessary to get a grocery budget under $100/person/mo.

That's what I, and the person you replied to were feeling reactive to.

It's possibly we interpreted the suggestion wrong, but in no way was there any judgement of people who *need* food bank services. Only the suggestion of abusing food bank services AND the implication that it's otherwise impossible to keep food spending below $100/person/mo.

Whether the staff at the food bank would judge me for coming in is besides the point. I do not need to use food bank services, and I would be an asshole if I did just to get my grocery bill down.

[Sockigal]

We're a family of 2 adults and 1 kid, don't shop anywhere fancy and eat mostly vegetables (maybe salmon or chicken once a week), yet it's hard to keep grocery/household perishable goods less than $800 a month. How do you all get by with $100-200/person/month?

As I explained above, by primarily making meals where the bulk of the nutrients come from low cost ingredients.

So a meal of salmon and a chopped veggie salad of red peppers, tomatoes, avocados, cucumber and salad dressing will cost several times more than an African kidney bean curry with rice.

Will you share some of your favorite easy low cost recipes. I enjoy doing bulk cooking for weekly lunches and haven't been able to curb my grocery budget much. You seem to have found the holy grail of grocery budgeting. Maybe sharing some of these tricks will guide this thread into a friendlier and more productive place?

I put a lot of work into curating recipes with inexpensive core ingredients, which depend heavily on spices and cooking technique for flavour, like legumes and root vegetables, not expensive ingredients that taste great without much intervention, like meat, cheese, and avocados. This means I also don't have to shop for sales, because what I'm buying is pretty much always cheap.

Budget Bytes is a great resource for this.

[amberfocus]

$100 per person for food per month is VERY inexpensive. I am amazed that one can eat for that little.

See if you can find a discount grocery store that specializes in expired food in your area. We have one that has expired/near expiration and other damaged and supermarket rejects and it is cheap!

Food banks are another good option, generally they dont ask for proof of anything and often they are getting rejected food that otherwise would have been thrown away.

What the hell?

This is absolutely not necessary for keeping a grocery bill under $100/person/mo.

[snip]

You don't need to lie to a food bank to have a low grocery bill, you just need to know how to handle dried beans.

Thanks for calling that out, Malcat. I felt super squick reading the food pantry suggestion, but chickened out of addressing it directly because I felt bad about outright shaming the poster if they genuinely thought they were being helpful. But yeah... my interactions with food banks have only gone in the opposite direction (and I don't give them 'rejected' food, either; they have lists of items that they want and we'd shop specifically for those).

It's good you curbed any instinct to shame.  You don't need to feel super squick, either. Foodbanks aren't asking for proof, so nobody is lying to them.
If this past year has taught us anything, it should be that people who once had everything can very quickly have nothing. If you've never needed to rely on a foodbank to keep your kids from going to bed hungry, count yourself lucky.

There are millions whose income from 2019 disqualified them from getting SNAP benefits when the SHTF in 2020. 

I'm related to one.  She was shopper at Whole Foods, bagging groceries for curbside pick-up making $18/hour.  She was hospitalized in May and then fired for missing work when she was in the hospital. Her Unemployment Insurance claim was rejected because they said she was fired for cause. She had no money coming in during the appeals that dragged on for several months.  Her mortgage company gave her a forbearance but her Condo Association didn't, and the association dues & late fees are racking up a gigantic debt that includes legal fees for the association's attorney.  Of course that's when the water heater broke, the stove died and a problem with the AC meant she couldn't run that all summer.

The last thing anyone in desperate circumstances needs is to be shamed or asked to prove how empty their cupboards are.  There are people like my loved one who were perfectly fine one year ago. There are plenty who are undocumented or suffering in ways that aren't readily apparent.

Okay, so this is kinda awkward.

I actually agree vociferously with everything that you're saying, and I'm genuinely mortified that you think I'd shame anyone for going to a food bank, so I'm trying very hard to figure out why my post would elicit such a reaction, because there is clearly some disconnect there. The closest I've been able to come up with is that perhaps you think that anyone with less than $100 a month to spend on food is genuinely justified in supplementing from a food bank, and thus shouldn't be shamed for the suggestion to go to one? Is that right, or am I way off base?

If that's the case, then sure -- I'm not going to argue that there is any arbitrary spending or income cutoff before it's no longer shameful to go to a food pantry. If someone cannot afford their groceries, then by all means, please use a food bank, that's literally what it's there for. I donate to my local food pantry (brand-name food that I don't buy for myself, because I get worried that store-brand might come across as condescending). The last thing that I want is to shame anyone for going to a food bank.

But this thread is not about Mustachians who cannot afford their groceries; it's about certain Mustachians who simply want to cut down their (possibly facepunch-worthy) grocery spending, that they can still absolutely afford. Suggesting that one goes to a food bank in the latter case seems... uncalled for, at best? And possibly facepunch-worthy, in and of itself?

Let me put it this way. My SO goes on walks in the neighborhood wearing boots that is held together by duct tape, because he digs that homeless-chic look (okay not really, he just doesn't give a damn, because Shopping Is Hard). He's gotten stopped on the side of the road multiple times by people offering him new shoes that clearly came from a clothing/shoe drive. He always turns them down. He can afford to buy new shoes without taking handouts intended for those who are less fortunate. Accepting those free shoes feels squick.

That's the same gut reaction that Malcat and I had towards the food pantry suggestion. I hope that this is more clear. If not, please feel free to reply or PM me.

[charis]

$100 per person for food per month is VERY inexpensive. I am amazed that one can eat for that little.

See if you can find a discount grocery store that specializes in expired food in your area. We have one that has expired/near expiration and other damaged and supermarket rejects and it is cheap!

Food banks are another good option, generally they dont ask for proof of anything and often they are getting rejected food that otherwise would have been thrown away.

What the hell?

This is absolutely not necessary for keeping a grocery bill under $100/person/mo.

[snip]

You don't need to lie to a food bank to have a low grocery bill, you just need to know how to handle dried beans.

Thanks for calling that out, Malcat. I felt super squick reading the food pantry suggestion, but chickened out of addressing it directly because I felt bad about outright shaming the poster if they genuinely thought they were being helpful. But yeah... my interactions with food banks have only gone in the opposite direction (and I don't give them 'rejected' food, either; they have lists of items that they want and we'd shop specifically for those).

It's good you curbed any instinct to shame.  You don't need to feel super squick, either. Foodbanks aren't asking for proof, so nobody is lying to them.
If this past year has taught us anything, it should be that people who once had everything can very quickly have nothing. If you've never needed to rely on a foodbank to keep your kids from going to bed hungry, count yourself lucky.

There are millions whose income from 2019 disqualified them from getting SNAP benefits when the SHTF in 2020. 

I'm related to one.  She was shopper at Whole Foods, bagging groceries for curbside pick-up making $18/hour.  She was hospitalized in May and then fired for missing work when she was in the hospital. Her Unemployment Insurance claim was rejected because they said she was fired for cause. She had no money coming in during the appeals that dragged on for several months.  Her mortgage company gave her a forbearance but her Condo Association didn't, and the association dues & late fees are racking up a gigantic debt that includes legal fees for the association's attorney.  Of course that's when the water heater broke, the stove died and a problem with the AC meant she couldn't run that all summer.

The last thing anyone in desperate circumstances needs is to be shamed or asked to prove how empty their cupboards are.  There are people like my loved one who were perfectly fine one year ago. There are plenty who are undocumented or suffering in ways that aren't readily apparent.

Okay, so this is kinda awkward.

I actually agree vociferously with everything that you're saying, and I'm genuinely mortified that you think I'd shame anyone for going to a food bank, so I'm trying very hard to figure out why my post would elicit such a reaction, because there is clearly some disconnect there. The closest I've been able to come up with is that perhaps you think that anyone with less than $100 a month to spend on food is genuinely justified in supplementing from a food bank, and thus shouldn't be shamed for the suggestion to go to one? Is that right, or am I way off base?

If that's the case, then sure -- I'm not going to argue that there is any arbitrary spending or income cutoff before it's no longer shameful to go to a food pantry. If someone cannot afford their groceries, then by all means, please use a food bank, that's literally what it's there for. I donate to my local food pantry (brand-name food that I don't buy for myself, because I get worried that store-brand might come across as condescending). The last thing that I want is to shame anyone for going to a food bank.

But this thread is not about Mustachians who cannot afford their groceries; it's about certain Mustachians who simply want to cut down their (possibly facepunch-worthy) grocery spending, that they can still absolutely afford. Suggesting that one goes to a food bank in the latter case seems... uncalled for, at best? And possibly facepunch-worthy, in and of itself?

Let me put it this way. My SO goes on walks in the neighborhood wearing boots that is held together by duct tape, because he digs that homeless-chic look (okay not really, he just doesn't give a damn, because Shopping Is Hard). He's gotten stopped on the side of the road multiple times by people offering him new shoes that clearly came from a clothing/shoe drive. He always turns them down. He can afford to buy new shoes without taking handouts intended for those who are less fortunate. Accepting those free shoes feels squick.

That's the same gut reaction that Malcat and I had towards the food pantry suggestion. I hope that this is more clear. If not, please feel free to reply or PM me.

I don't understand why you are assuming that suggesting that someone go to a food bank is "squick" (this is a ridiculous term).  No one should be made to feel bad about it, regardless of the reason.  It has nothing to do with whether your BF decides to accept free shoes. 

[amberfocus]

$100 per person for food per month is VERY inexpensive. I am amazed that one can eat for that little.

See if you can find a discount grocery store that specializes in expired food in your area. We have one that has expired/near expiration and other damaged and supermarket rejects and it is cheap!

Food banks are another good option, generally they dont ask for proof of anything and often they are getting rejected food that otherwise would have been thrown away.

What the hell?

This is absolutely not necessary for keeping a grocery bill under $100/person/mo.

[snip]

You don't need to lie to a food bank to have a low grocery bill, you just need to know how to handle dried beans.

Thanks for calling that out, Malcat. I felt super squick reading the food pantry suggestion, but chickened out of addressing it directly because I felt bad about outright shaming the poster if they genuinely thought they were being helpful. But yeah... my interactions with food banks have only gone in the opposite direction (and I don't give them 'rejected' food, either; they have lists of items that they want and we'd shop specifically for those).

It's good you curbed any instinct to shame.  You don't need to feel super squick, either. Foodbanks aren't asking for proof, so nobody is lying to them.
If this past year has taught us anything, it should be that people who once had everything can very quickly have nothing. If you've never needed to rely on a foodbank to keep your kids from going to bed hungry, count yourself lucky.

There are millions whose income from 2019 disqualified them from getting SNAP benefits when the SHTF in 2020. 

I'm related to one.  She was shopper at Whole Foods, bagging groceries for curbside pick-up making $18/hour.  She was hospitalized in May and then fired for missing work when she was in the hospital. Her Unemployment Insurance claim was rejected because they said she was fired for cause. She had no money coming in during the appeals that dragged on for several months.  Her mortgage company gave her a forbearance but her Condo Association didn't, and the association dues & late fees are racking up a gigantic debt that includes legal fees for the association's attorney.  Of course that's when the water heater broke, the stove died and a problem with the AC meant she couldn't run that all summer.

The last thing anyone in desperate circumstances needs is to be shamed or asked to prove how empty their cupboards are.  There are people like my loved one who were perfectly fine one year ago. There are plenty who are undocumented or suffering in ways that aren't readily apparent.

Okay, so this is kinda awkward.

I actually agree vociferously with everything that you're saying, and I'm genuinely mortified that you think I'd shame anyone for going to a food bank, so I'm trying very hard to figure out why my post would elicit such a reaction, because there is clearly some disconnect there. The closest I've been able to come up with is that perhaps you think that anyone with less than $100 a month to spend on food is genuinely justified in supplementing from a food bank, and thus shouldn't be shamed for the suggestion to go to one? Is that right, or am I way off base?

If that's the case, then sure -- I'm not going to argue that there is any arbitrary spending or income cutoff before it's no longer shameful to go to a food pantry. If someone cannot afford their groceries, then by all means, please use a food bank, that's literally what it's there for. I donate to my local food pantry (brand-name food that I don't buy for myself, because I get worried that store-brand might come across as condescending). The last thing that I want is to shame anyone for going to a food bank.

But this thread is not about Mustachians who cannot afford their groceries; it's about certain Mustachians who simply want to cut down their (possibly facepunch-worthy) grocery spending, that they can still absolutely afford. Suggesting that one goes to a food bank in the latter case seems... uncalled for, at best? And possibly facepunch-worthy, in and of itself?

Let me put it this way. My SO goes on walks in the neighborhood wearing boots that is held together by duct tape, because he digs that homeless-chic look (okay not really, he just doesn't give a damn, because Shopping Is Hard). He's gotten stopped on the side of the road multiple times by people offering him new shoes that clearly came from a clothing/shoe drive. He always turns them down. He can afford to buy new shoes without taking handouts intended for those who are less fortunate. Accepting those free shoes feels squick.

That's the same gut reaction that Malcat and I had towards the food pantry suggestion. I hope that this is more clear. If not, please feel free to reply or PM me.

$100 per person for food per month is VERY inexpensive. I am amazed that one can eat for that little.

See if you can find a discount grocery store that specializes in expired food in your area. We have one that has expired/near expiration and other damaged and supermarket rejects and it is cheap!

Food banks are another good option, generally they dont ask for proof of anything and often they are getting rejected food that otherwise would have been thrown away.

What the hell?

This is absolutely not necessary for keeping a grocery bill under $100/person/mo.

[snip]

You don't need to lie to a food bank to have a low grocery bill, you just need to know how to handle dried beans.

Thanks for calling that out, Malcat. I felt super squick reading the food pantry suggestion, but chickened out of addressing it directly because I felt bad about outright shaming the poster if they genuinely thought they were being helpful. But yeah... my interactions with food banks have only gone in the opposite direction (and I don't give them 'rejected' food, either; they have lists of items that they want and we'd shop specifically for those).

It's good you curbed any instinct to shame.  You don't need to feel super squick, either. Foodbanks aren't asking for proof, so nobody is lying to them.
If this past year has taught us anything, it should be that people who once had everything can very quickly have nothing. If you've never needed to rely on a foodbank to keep your kids from going to bed hungry, count yourself lucky.

There are millions whose income from 2019 disqualified them from getting SNAP benefits when the SHTF in 2020. 

I'm related to one.  She was shopper at Whole Foods, bagging groceries for curbside pick-up making $18/hour.  She was hospitalized in May and then fired for missing work when she was in the hospital. Her Unemployment Insurance claim was rejected because they said she was fired for cause. She had no money coming in during the appeals that dragged on for several months.  Her mortgage company gave her a forbearance but her Condo Association didn't, and the association dues & late fees are racking up a gigantic debt that includes legal fees for the association's attorney.  Of course that's when the water heater broke, the stove died and a problem with the AC meant she couldn't run that all summer.

The last thing anyone in desperate circumstances needs is to be shamed or asked to prove how empty their cupboards are.  There are people like my loved one who were perfectly fine one year ago. There are plenty who are undocumented or suffering in ways that aren't readily apparent.

Okay, so this is kinda awkward.

I actually agree vociferously with everything that you're saying, and I'm genuinely mortified that you think I'd shame anyone for going to a food bank, so I'm trying very hard to figure out why my post would elicit such a reaction, because there is clearly some disconnect there. The closest I've been able to come up with is that perhaps you think that anyone with less than $100 a month to spend on food is genuinely justified in supplementing from a food bank, and thus shouldn't be shamed for the suggestion to go to one? Is that right, or am I way off base?

If that's the case, then sure -- I'm not going to argue that there is any arbitrary spending or income cutoff before it's no longer shameful to go to a food pantry. If someone cannot afford their groceries, then by all means, please use a food bank, that's literally what it's there for. I donate to my local food pantry (brand-name food that I don't buy for myself, because I get worried that store-brand might come across as condescending). The last thing that I want is to shame anyone for going to a food bank.

But this thread is not about Mustachians who cannot afford their groceries; it's about certain Mustachians who simply want to cut down their (possibly facepunch-worthy) grocery spending, that they can still absolutely afford. Suggesting that one goes to a food bank in the latter case seems... uncalled for, at best? And possibly facepunch-worthy, in and of itself?

Let me put it this way. My SO goes on walks in the neighborhood wearing boots that is held together by duct tape, because he digs that homeless-chic look (okay not really, he just doesn't give a damn, because Shopping Is Hard). He's gotten stopped on the side of the road multiple times by people offering him new shoes that clearly came from a clothing/shoe drive. He always turns them down. He can afford to buy new shoes without taking handouts intended for those who are less fortunate. Accepting those free shoes feels squick.

That's the same gut reaction that Malcat and I had towards the food pantry suggestion. I hope that this is more clear. If not, please feel free to reply or PM me.

I don't understand why you are assuming that suggesting that someone go to a food bank is "squick" (this is a ridiculous term).  No one should be made to feel bad about it, regardless of the reason.  It has nothing to do with whether your BF decides to accept free shoes. 

Sigh.

*All* I was trying to say is that it is that -- to me, at least -- there is a qualitative difference between saying:

1. Go to a food bank because you cannot afford your food; and
2. Go to a food bank because you don't want to spend as much on groceries.

I understand that the latter can still come across as the obnoxious finger-wagging that conservatives love to heap on those who dare to utilize the social safety net, which might explain the pile-on here. That was honestly never my intention.

PM me if you'd like to discuss further. I don't want to further derail this thread.

[norajean]

Most Americans spend right around $300/mo per adult. If you really crank it down you can closer to $200 and if you go nuts maybe $400. Alcohol is wildly variable. Do you like a $100 bottle of burgundy with dinner or a Schlitz? Restaurants can be near zero or unlimited, depending on your tastes. Most people spend about the same dining out as dining in.  The percentage is just a factor of your income. Groceries don’t increase much with inc9me but booze and dining out do.

[Shane]

In 2020, 29% of our spending went towards 'food,' which also included a bit of beer, wine, coffee, tea, etc. For a family of 3, in 2020, we spent close to $1200/month on 'food', mostly groceries, a little takeout, but very few restaurant meals, because of the pandemic. Could easily cut 'food' spending in half if we ever needed to. The reason it's so high is because we're choosing to eat well and buying much of our produce, meat, milk, fish, eggs, etc., all from local farmers, ranchers, and fishermen through our local farmers market, a CSA, and a shop within easy walking distance of our house that specializes in supporting local food producers. It seems extravagant to us, but our spending in other major categories, i.e., housing and transportation, is pretty cheap, due to a recent move to a LCOL area, and also because of the pandemic, which has restricted travel.

[NotCreativeName]

We budget $125/wk for food, cleaning & paper supplies, & dog food/treats.  Our eating out budget is $60/wk.  This is for 2 adults and 2 dogs.  We are able to eat very well within that budget.  It is about 15% of our total budget.

[Raenia]

I'm not sure why percentage is relevant - earning more money doesn't make grocery prices suddenly rise.

I budget about $250/month for two adults, and that includes all consumables (paper products, toothpaste, laundry detergent, etc.)  I've been pushing the top end of that since I started using a local food CSA-type delivery for produce, but on average it still works out.

Someone asked for cheap recipes - I'm not as good a cook as @Malcat, but here's some of my go-to's:
 - 3-bean chili (vegetarian) with rice or homemade sourdough
 - chana masala with rice
 - rajma (red bean curry)
 - saag (curried greens, I've used spinach, chard, beet greens, turnip greens, whatever)
 - veggie stir fry - whatever veggies are handy with soy sauce, garlic, and ginger (onions, bell pepper, snap peas, cabbage, julienned carrots, you can really throw anything in)
 - fried rice, same as above but with the rice mixed in and an egg or two
 - meatless soups - minestrone, black bean soup, ginger-carrot-parsnip, leek and potato, butternut squash

[kite]

Sigh.

*All* I was trying to say is that it is that -- to me, at least -- there is a qualitative difference between saying:

1. Go to a food bank because you cannot afford your food; and
2. Go to a food bank because you don't want to spend as much on groceries.

I understand that the latter can still come across as the obnoxious finger-wagging that conservatives love to heap on those who dare to utilize the social safety net, which might explain the pile-on here. That was honestly never my intention.

PM me if you'd like to discuss further. I don't want to further derail this thread.

Actually glad to read your responses.  I don't think this derails the thread at all, but is on point (as was the recommendation to take advantage of food banks or other very low cost food sources). How to feed oneself and one's family as frugally as possible is of interest to those who have high or low incomes.  We can no longer assume that because someone is Mustachian or aspires to early retirement that they still have a reliable income or a decent nest egg after 2020. 

We've all got an instinct to judge actions and choices of others. It's human nature. But I don't subscribe to the notion that any person using a food bank is doing so for nefarious purposes.  They are hungry.  Do some have a perfectly adequate income from which they ought to be able to feed themselves?  Absolutely.  My husband's late father was such a person. He was also an alcoholic and he and his family went hungry a lot on account of his addiction.  Did I judge him?  Absolutely.  And was that judgement pointless?  Absolutely. 

I think you ought to use a food bank if you are hungry. I don't think you ought to spend down every last bit of your resources before you use a food bank.  I'd imagine you might also agree.  If you've got to deplete your $1000 emergency savings *before* using a food bank, then when your brakes fail, you are even further behind. You'll still be hungry then, too, and with less chance to recover.

I trust that everyone with means to not rely on food banks (those who are financially, physically, psychologically and socially healthy) are not depleting the shelves of food banks. I trust that every single person who uses one does, in fact, need food. I trust that if they could reliably feed themselves without resorting to charity, they would.

[Metalcat]

I trust that everyone with means to not rely on food banks (those who are financially, physically, psychologically and socially healthy) are not depleting the shelves of food banks. I trust that every single person who uses one does, in fact, need food. I trust that if they could reliably feed themselves without resorting to charity, they would.

Okay cool, you can trust that, but what we were reacting to was the pp who was seeking to suggest that people who can reliably feed themselves would have to resort to exploiting a charity if they had any hope of getting their food spending below $100/person/mo. That's what sounded so insane, because it is so unfathomable that someone would do that.

That was what made pp feel "squick" about that post, that's what made me react.

Literally no one said anything at any time about judging anyone who legitimately needs food bank services.