Groceries
 

Grocery shopping last night, and I have noticed they are having trouble selling meat these day's, I have never seen as many $2 and $4 off stickers as I have in the last month. But when ground beef is 5 something per pound, I don't blame people.

I did pick up some chicken $2 off, I only buy meat now when it's discounted.

Eating healthier these days, and gotten better at bringing down our cost, reduced portions mostly so we don't have to buy as much.

$135 today, prices have been noticeably higher on almost everything, salad mix that was 3.99 6 months ago, is now 5.99, cheese seems about the same, mostly meat and produce with the prices that rise every week,

Plain yogurt
2 bags carrots
Pack of spinach small
Bananas (these never seem to go up in price, most price stable food out there.)
1 can sardines (for the dog, helps her skin and coat from getting dry.)
Box of whole wheat pasta
chicken breast fillets
Cooked shrimp
English muffins 2 packs
Frozen mixed berries 2 packs
Frozen mixed veggies 3 packs
Frozen corn 1 pack
Grape Tomatoes 2 packs
Kale 1 bunch
Cream cheese
Salad dressing x 2
bread 2 loaves
Cooked turkey strips
Zucchini 2
Black beans 2 cans
Salad mix
Pink salmon 1 can
Brown rice 1 bag
Can of tomatoes 2
Cucumber 1
bell peppers 2
Shredded cheese

Doesn't look like meals but I can turn the above into edible dinners... (we eat eggs and oatmeal for lunch, and breakfast and cereal, but didn't need any this week.)

Eating this way is double the price of frozen crap, but does make one feel better.

Re: Groceries
 

We eat a lot of chicken, but the price can vary wildly. One store may have 3-4,breasts for 8$ and another store may have it on at 15$ for the same. We have almost every name supermarket in Ajax so it's easy enough to nip round the stores and get the best price then buy a few trays full to freeze.

Re: Groceries
 

Despite having Canada's largest factory chicken farm in the province (a fact of which the provincial government were so proud they ran adverts about it on tv a few years back), chicken is expensive here. A family pack of skinless and boneless breasts normally runs around $13-15. Every 3 weeks or so one or other of the two grocery chains has them on sale for 30-50% off. We buy in bulk and freeze.

Beef seems to be getting more expensive and lamb is so eye-wateringly costly we never eat it. Pork always seems cheaper. Given that everything here is imported from the mainland that puzzles me.

Re: Groceries
 

Agree, that food shopping is getting more & more expensive by the week [especially beef product] & depending on where you live, the competition around - it can be real difficult to do it on a cost savings basis.

How long will the items in that $135 grocery bill last for - or is that the one month grocery tab?

Smaller grocery stores sometimes have better deals on fresh produce, even on the mark downs.

I do the grocery shopping & always hit the mark down, discount, best by date section first, as well as 'price match' which in my part of the country we have a large selection of stores to choose from that do this.

Good luck with the Grocery bills JS

Re: Groceries
 

I still find the best way to buy meat is to buy large quantities from Costco, cut it into portions and wrap it up, and chuck it in the freezer. It makes for a big purchase up front but the per-portion cost is quite cheap. (A whole beef tenderloin, for example, costs about $100, but makes about 12-13 portions. I also did a comparison of salmon a few weeks ago; most grocery stores sell salmon for about $28/kg, Costco has it for $22/kg.)

Re: Groceries
 

My food bills are astronomical at the minute as I've only just moved here and am building up the pantry. I have to say I don't find food shopping more expensive than England which probably says more about the UK than here. We can afford to eat steak each week (we're in Alberta which helps!), we buy in bulk at Costco and this makes the meat cheaper. Cheese is horrendously expensive especially considering its plastic, the cheese monster that is DS refuses to eat it so we treat him to the proper stuff we find in Costco. Dried herbs and spices are expensive so we took a trip to an Indian grocery store and stocked up. Fruit and veg are in better condition than the UK. Obviously it's not as cheap as Lidl or Aldi but I don't mind paying a few cents more than Tesco for better quality. All in all not as expensive as I thought it was going to be but we did move from Portsmouth which seems to think it's London with the cost of things. I think if you come from Wales, Scotland or the north of England you will find it expensive here. I think the challenge for me now is to menu plan and stick to a budget!

Re: Groceries
 

The Costco approach of buying in bulk and it lasts longer works great until you have teenage boys in the house. Once that happens it doesn't matter how much you buy, its gone in a week.

Re: Groceries
 

Completely with you on the cheese from Costco. I hate the rubber bricks from brands like Cracker Barrel and Black Diamond... if I'm going to bother with the calories from cheese, I'm going to get the decent stuff, and at least Costco's prices make it marginally - marginally - less painful. :)

Spices, I've recently found actually that if you can find a grocery store with a good bulk section, then spices from the bulk section are way cheaper than what you find on the shelves. I picked up a load of smallish jars from Ikea and just picked up the spices I needed in bulk - certainly way cheaper that way. We have been doing the stock-up recently as well having just moved into a new house 5 months ago (I'm still working on stock, just buying spices as I require them!) and I'm finding the bulk option is working quite well. :)

These are the jars I picked up: DROPPAR Spice jar - IKEA Got 12 to start, they fit nicely in the cupboard, and they stack, which I also appreciate. I just used a bit of Magic Tape to put a label on the bottom so I know what's in what. :)

Haha, true, but even if it disappears more quickly, it's still cheaper to get it from Costco in larger quantities! It helps that I work about 6 minutes away from a Costco, so popping in once a week is actually doable! (Hmm, need to go next week, actually...)

Re: Groceries
 

Good move.

Might not be double if by eating nutritious food you end up eating less.

Re: Groceries
 

Oh you lah-de-dah mainlanders and your "IKEA". Out here on the edge of the continent if it 'aint in Crappy Tire, you 'aint having it.:(

Re: Groceries
 

Hehe! :) Apologies if I've touched a nerve! :p

Re: Groceries
 

I've seen those things in the Co-op. They frightened me. :lol:
You mean individual portions rather than a portion for a family meal? As in 12 portions make 3 dinners for a family of four, so $33 worth of meat per meal? :eek:

:blink:
Latest Superstore flyer has Salmon Fillets $15.41/kg. Says normally $23/kg but those "normally" comments usually inflate the true normal price.

I remember that from when multi-packs of steak were first available. I'd have it at least every other night. :o

Not keen on BD but absolutely nothing wrong with Extra Old Cracker Barrel or the PC version of extra old. They're even the proper colour. :thumbsup:

Re: Groceries
 

Not wanting to rub it in in any way, but we have two within a 20 mins drive.

Re: Groceries
 

Well, if you're talking about beef tenderloin (fillet of beef) then yeah, tis' the priciest cut... so probably not far off that price, really. We don't have it often, but when I'm going to barbecue a steak, I like having the really good stuff. Other cuts, while cheaper, just aren't as satisfying. Just my personal opinion. :)

I suppose number of portions also depends on how thick you cut your beef... I Tend to cut it quite thick so that it stays more rare in the middle when barbecued! I think the last one I bought made 14 portions at about 1.5-2inches thick each... the whole tenderloin was probably about 20 inches long or so.

Re: Groceries
 

Omg I gave my husband a shopping list last night and sent him out to do a "shop"... I don't know how he managed it, but he spent double what I usually spend and I think that's expensive. I was horrified when he came home, he was defensive.

He probably thinks job done, she'll never ask me again:sneaky:

Re: Groceries
 

Next time I go to Costco I'll jot down the meat prices, since I'm not remembering them off the top of my head. I also need to buy another tenderloin as we are about out, so I'll count out how many portions I get out of it. Might take a pic or two. :)

Re: Groceries
 

We rarely, if ever, eat meat these day as HID has us on a healthier regime, this month she's into soaking her own beans (giggity), so any animals consumed are mostly fish. That said, while I've never added it up but I must spend a fortune on takeaways when she's not around. :lol:

Re: Groceries
 

The barbecue frightens me even more than the $100 slabs of tenderloin. Especially as we've not used it in years.

My stepson is good at that.

Re: Groceries
 

BBQ steaks are lovely! :) We have a gas bbq that's hooked up to the house mains... we are planning on getting a charcoal bbq at some point as well, but the gas one is decent for steaks which are only on for a few minutes anyway. :D Mmmm steak. Now I want steak.

Re: Groceries
 

Unless its a wind-up or someone is taking the pi$$ [boasting on how much they spend on groceries] which the OP is probably hyperventilating reading the last few posts with all the discussion on Costco, bulk buy steaks, salmon, tenderloin OMG!

Where do some of you get the money for such expensive groceries & I can't imagine having mid teen boys. You need two maybe three jobs just to feed four adults is my guess?

On another thread somewhere discussed previously, its time to update it - 'how much per month on groceries (food items only) do you spend' - just the dollar number & how many people does it feed, not what's in the basket nor household cleaning items or personal care - just the food items that would go into your stomachs?

Re: Groceries
 

Its free. :thumbup:

As for groceries, HID's mum does the big shop for us as a favour and she goes to three or four shops so its difficult to tell. Its why I'm not in favour of supermarkets selling booze as she'll no doubt load her cart up with a few cheeky bottles wine for herself. ;)

Re: Groceries
 

of course it is!

Re: Groceries
 

Oh I wish... I love Salmon... It's pretty pricey though for an average meal.

Re: Groceries
 

Worth noting that we don't splurge out on tenderloin all the time, haha. I bought a tenderloin when we moved into our house in the beginning of December, I think there are 3 portions left and it's April. We really don't have it very often. :)

Re: Groceries
 

There's loads of them all swimming about here. Apparently, its going off at The Hump, so weather permitting, I might pop over there this afternoon. :thumbup:

Re: Groceries
 

Is it legal to poach salmon in BC, or is it a free for all - simply scoop them up?

Re: Groceries
 

About £150 pp including cleaning and personal care items. Not including alchohol!

Re: Groceries
 

Hmmm, there's what we call here, a fishing license, it allows you to take a certain amount of fish of different species per day/month. They (DFO) are opening up the lingcod season on May 1st. so it'll be nice having some white fish in the freezer for a change.

Re: Groceries
 

on meat items - on special last week in the local ethnic supermarket was goat shoulder at $2.79/lb. I bought $8 worth, cut & cubed, popped in the pressure cooker together with celery, carrot, onion, water some flour - cook for an hour. This gave us about six meals. just add a spud or two & slice of bread.

Anyone try goat?

Re: Groceries
 

No, but it's quite a popular curry meat.

Re: Groceries
 

Yes, our local butcher got some local goat in last year. I made a goat curry but to be honest, I much prefer lamb.

Re: Groceries
 

15 and up is the norm around here for Chicken breasts, cheaper if you buy the thin fillets.

We don't have much choice grocery wise, just have 3 stores, they more or less charge the same price on basics, not enough variation to go to all 3, so I stick with Save On, but they also have the best selection. Extra Foods is basically PC Brand, No Name and 1 name brand on every item. But their prices on PC and no name are usually just as high as Save On's generic brand, and their store is dirty, smelly and gross, Save On at least has a nice clean modern store.

About a week worth here, will have to top up next week, so won't need everything needed this week, but probably close to the same.

We have been doing 120-140 a week as of late.

I picked up an extra shift at work, that is our weekly grocery money...lol

This weeks meat prices as advertised. They don't advertise a "normal" price for meat, just the current "sale" price which may or may not actually be lower.

Ground Beef 4.29 per pound.
Whole chicken 2.59 per pound.
Rip Grilling steak 8.99 per pound.
Inside Round Roast 6.49 per pound.


454g of Salmon, frozen 14.99
Sable Fish 4.49 per 100/g
Ocean Perch 1.59 per 100/g

That is for Save On

Nesters

Ground Beef 3.98/lb
Wild sockye, previously frozen 2.18 per 100/g


Extra Foods

Sirloin Tip Roast 4.48/lb
Chicken Wings club size 3.58/lb
Boneless pork loin chops 5.48/lb
Atlantic Salmon 8.98/lb
Frozen pollock, processed in China 680g 5.98


I didn't buy all that meat, just the prices from the flyer.


Nesters also sells more interesting meat as well in small quantities like Rabbit, Duck, Bison, Ostrich but the prices are less then wallet friendly, all frozen since they don't sell it at the same rate as more common meats.

Have not seen goat anywhere before, but we have no butcher in town, so might be why.

Re: Groceries
 

I have found a few smaller 'groceteria' that have mark down specials that beat the 'price match'

Our grocery 'food only' bill per month for two people is average ~$135/calendar mth. Milk & dairy usage is down ~50% from a year ago.

Re: Groceries
 

Down for budgetary or dietary reasons?

That seems impossibly low. About $2 per day per person ???

Re: Groceries
 

Hah! How much gas do you burn on those twin verado's for your salmon catch then? I can recall catching a couple of measly mackerel off Weymouth some years ago and burning 70 quid of petrol in the process.;)

Re: Groceries
 

It depends at what RPM you run the engines. The difference between 3,800 and 4,400 is about $80 round trip to the hump. Plus, weight makes a difference, so it depends on how many "friends" I take and how much booze is on board. :lol:

Re: Groceries
 

Really, that's the actual incremental cost of going fast??

Re: Groceries
 

Yes, with these big engines. 3,800 is still fast just not quite as fast. It also depends on the sea conditions, as if its rough you tend to decelerate and accelerate according to the waves and that can burn a lot more petrol. Overall when you take into account, moorage, maintance, petrol, fishing gear, bait, picnics and booze, it does rather add up. ;)

Re: Groceries
 

neither, other than the dairy - its just the way its worked out.

example is that competition & price match many items are cheaper, the ones that have escalated we stay away from.

We buy mainly specials, stock up, divide up, freeze as necessary.

Latest buys & have figured out the specials cycle that the supermarts roll with.

Past week, 10 lb bag of onions $0.99, PEI spuds $1.29/5Ib, the goat $2.79/Ib, Cod $2.99/Ib, which goes into fish/veg soup as well as cod cakes, freeze both into meal size portions. Halal Veal liver $2.49/Ib cut & divided into 4oz portions. Red meat (mainly mince beef or pork) only if & when on special. Meat/pork into balls (on special or mark down) with sawdust filling & pasta, home made tomato sauce from marked down tomatoes, home made pasties, that would have ~20% meat filling add in with potato, onion, celery, carrot & frozen spinach on special. Make a bunch & freeze. From the on the markdown shelf, four pack red peppers $0.99 ~1kg, other similar items.

No roast beef, no steaks or tenderloin or salmon

Re: Groceries
 

Yes it must do. At least all the big fish offset some of the cost.