US Dept. of Ag food budgets

[catherine]

We are on the high side for food budgets (800-1000), but my grocery bill is inflated with "convenience" purchases (no major supermarket on the island) and local purchases (which tend to be higher) and this year, I started including DH's cigars because it's a PIA to go through every receipt and pull those out.

As for coffee, I am not fussy about most food, but I follow the sales for Green Mountain Dark Magic ground coffee, and I stock up. I'd have to be desperate to resort to instant coffee.

[happystuff]

Thanks, early morning.

[rosarugosa]

We are on the high side for food budgets (800-1000), but my grocery bill is inflated with "convenience" purchases (no major supermarket on the island) and local purchases (which tend to be higher) and this year, I started including DH's cigars because it's a PIA to go through every receipt and pull those out.

As for coffee, I am not fussy about most food, but I follow the sales for Green Mountain Dark Magic ground coffee, and I stock up. I'd have to be desperate to resort to instant coffee.

We like Vermont Coffee Company's coffee, and we buy the beans at Costco. We pay $16 for 2 lbs, which is about half what Stonewall Kitchen charges (they own the brand). I think that's pretty cheap for what I would consider to be a luxury coffee.

I would definitely have a cup of tea before resorting to instant coffee. I actually love tea.

[bae]

I live in an incredibly high cost-of-living area.

$900+/month, for one person.

I go to the grocery store roughly once a week, spending ~$150/visit. $600/month./ I buy almost entirely vegetables, fruit, dairy, and if there's some good meat/fish on offer for a good price, I'll grab that as well. I try to buy things that are on sale, my local market has pricing that varies wildly from week-to-week, day-to-day.

Most of the meat and fish I get, I source from local farmers and fisherman, so that cost should be added onto the $600/month, over the year. The meat tends to be better and cheaper than what the market can offer, but you have to buy in volume. I probably buy $1500 in fish, $2000 in beef/lamb/goat/pig each year, round that up to $3600/year, or another $300/month.

I mostly "buy" my own wine, cider, and beer. The wine is in essence "free", the beer has some cost for ingredients, the cider I make from my own fruit so it is "free". I then trade some of this stuff for some really nice mead the fellow down the road makes.

[sweetana3]

I guess we are on the low side. I think we spend around $75-100 a week for food. No pet food, no red meat or pork, very little processed foods. We often base our meals for the week on what is on sale or being clearanced due to expiration date. Example: Got a loaf of English muffin bread for $1.04, 18 eggs on sale for $3.99, huge box of spring mix for $3.

We are older and like simple meals. Rarely buy alcohol, no carbonated drinks, and occas. spend $100 at Costco for products like oatmeal, nuts, precooked chicken, etc. that last a long time.

[just_a_yak]

Just checked my cc statements: For the past year, I averaged about $125/month on groceries and $70/month on eating out ( -- this doesn't reflect ALL the food I ate last year, I eat at friends' houses or social events around 3 meals/week, and occasionally I'll go out to eat and someone else will foot the bill, but it's pretty much what I spent). But that was especially conscious, I was focused on paying down debts/saving money. This year I anticipate spending more. I buy everything I can at Aldi's (love it!) and rarely buy meat, chicken, or fish. I don't buy cage-free eggs or organic produce, so I save some money there (eek!). So I definitely could easily imagine spending the $300 that my age bracket calls for (or even more), but instead I eat pretty simple.

PS -- I also spent around $250 or so on alcohol for the year (no, not all for myself ) and I may have missed some grocery/restaurant expenses so the totals are probably slightly higher.