Wednesday, 04 March 2009
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Recession & Inflation: Did You Change Grocery Stores Or Give Up On Some Foods?
I realize this cut of meat is NEVER cheap but you’d think with the recession, it would be cheaper. A loin of pork was less than $20! You cant see it in the pic (below, warning: raw meat picture).(I was trying to take a fast one because some stores don't like photography for stupid reasons) but that was mostly fat! If you see more white (fat) than red/pink (meat), it's not a good cut & it's a waste of money.
I haven’t been grocery shopping in ages & I told mom instead of buying more food out (we’ve recently gotten our stove & fridge & have been eating out nearly everyday) I wanted to buy some food & cook. I don’t have much money from not getting hours but I can eat for a few days cooking than buying a pizza from Dominos.
I mostly got buy one get one items like box pastas, sauce for pasta we have at home, some frozen corn, chopped honeydew for $3.05 & lucked up on 2 for $6 juices but going over to the cold cuts, cheese & meat section made me want to cry. 8 ounces of cold cuts (roughly 8-12 slices depending on what you buy) was like $3-8 dollars!! And don’t even ask about the cheese. I would have come out better buying a block of cheese & cutting it myself! So no sandwich goods…
I went to the meat section with mom & things didn’t look any better as you can see in the picture. I don’t eat that cut of meat (I could buy tons of groceries for the price of that!) but the stuff I do eat I was turned off from due to the cost. A whole chicken was $12!! Usually you can get that for $5-8. Chicken breasts packs were almost $10 & the stew meat I’ll NEVER buy again. We got that a few weeks ago to make stew in the slow cooker when we got sick of eating out & by the time it cooked down, there was nothing left & they charge you $7 a pack. Mom got a pound of meat to make us a meatloaf this week & the package was so small, my Chihuahua could eat that in one sitting for dinner!
The only thing that went down was the milk & it was $2.98! Too bad cereal was $5 a box.
I ended up getting frozen meals, pizzas & found a pretty good deal on yogurt (10 for $7.50) too & I spent $36 total on my food. I can understand the gas prices going up to transport food but what’s going on with other things? Livestock isn’t going down unless I missed something on the news, cereal production hasn’t slowed, so what’s with the raising prices? When the economy goes down, usually the food isn’t too expensive; it’s just getting the money to buy it. In the 3 months I was without a stove & didn’t go shopping for things other than soup, juice & snacks, food prices skyrocketed!! I can eat for a week with the food I got believe it or not. I know frozen foods & other processed foods aren’t necessarily the ideal diet, but how can I worry about my health 20 years from now when I & millions of others are worrying about getting through tomorrow? I don’t eat like this constantly so I don’t worry but gosh…The sales are good for some things but in the long run…this ain't looking too good
What has the recession changed for you? Did you have to change stores or give up some foods because the prices are astronomical?
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Comments (10)
I have pretty much eliminated junk food... I did it both for health reasons with the kids and also for my budget... I don't buy a lot of meat but when I do I use a local meat market. He has better meat and lower prices. He also gives me a discount because I have a catering biz and order a lot of stuff from him...... ~Echo
They say grocery prices are up b/c the demand is high as ppl are eating at home more...
I knew it was bad when LIVER was 5 per pound... It's an INNARD!!!
I try not too buy anything too expensive and I eat a lot of beans and rice... I also buy as much off brand stuff as possible and I only shop at Aldi or Wal*mart... I used to be an advid Publix & Kroger shopper...
This recession is LAME!!!
@Lifes_Bookmark@xanga - I so didnt think about that! You're right, people are eating in more & prices go up. That's cruel to me. I dont know where you live but Albertson's is having a sale. Alot of items are 10 for $10 so my mom & I are running over there when it opens to stock up. Lately we've been waiting for big sales like that to stock up when we need groceries.
I dug out my old book on being a city girl on a budget & I may follow the advice on food like buying a chicken whole & cutting it up to save money & saving hambones to use for soups & stews. I used to laugh at things like that but now that times are rough, I may have to try something new.
@echois23@xanga - I should see if I can find a meat market by me. Even if it's a bit of a drive, I'll save money in the long run when there's no good sales. We used to go to one at home in NY & you're right, they do have better cuts of meat. I think grocery stores keep the fat in to save money & make it look like you get a good deal.
I've been trying to get my Mom to go to the dollar store for some things...like soap, toilet paper, snack food like applesauce...which're at the prices we remember them being before the recession (there, and only there, at the dollar store).
We've been buying alot of raw ingredients...but it's been getting harder for meat. The only things that're cheap are the after holidays type sales and hot dogs. We've learned to stock up on an extra turkey or ham than we need when this happens, to save in times when the prices make our selections much more lean than's good news.
We can't really buy even a bag of chips anymore for goodness sakes -- I've taken to just making hashbrowns once every two weeks after there's leftover cooked potatos of some sort and some meat grease to fry it up in. To solve the greasy potato craving.
I'm seriously glad milk's cheap again though. That was hurting us alot, after awhile.
The stores we go to have always fluctuated per shopping trip to where the sales and best deals were. It's just that there have been less and less sales and deals.
It's why we rely on our local farmers even more now and why we're growing some of our own food this year too.
69.13?? that's an awful lot for meat...
@MyFreedomWings@xanga - I feel you. I told mom we need to go back to the Victory Gardens of WWII. We live in a condo but I'll definitely buy those little pot gardens or grow something in a milk carton to save. Milk was more than gas for a while, but now it's down. I'm so glad.
You're right about chips & hot dogs too. The chips are over $3 a bag & the hot dogs were cheaper than the other meat but I dont eat hot dogs like that so I dont get them. Plus after Hurricane Wilma where I had nothing but hot dogs for days, I got sick of it. Everyone did but my dog. XD The store I'm going to shop at tomorrow is a bit of a drive away but you have to do what you can until things get better. I'll let you know how much their chips are! =)
@kmiahali@healthkicker - And it's not even alot of meat. Not even 8 pounds & like I noted in my blog, a majority of it was FAT! It'll probably cook down to nothing. I feel bad for anyone who will/did buy it.
for cereal, i realize target has good deals (esp when it's on sale)
i tend to stock up cereals when they are on sale so that i don't have to pay $5/box.
if you live in an area with a big chinatown (like SF/LA), go to the asian market. i realize the produce at a market in chinatown is cheaper than supermarket like safeway. e.g. a bunch of spinach costs $1.99 at safeway while a bunch of spinach costs $0.99 or $1.29 at an asian supermarket....
(oh, and meat is cheaper in those asian market too. but if you want a finer cut of meat, then i'd rather go to costco instead of safeway...unless it's on sale @ safeway)
i think i'm more cautious about where to get my food and also how much they cost when they are on sale. i try to buy food that's on sale and in season instead of what i want. =\
Just keep your eye on sales,Last week I got chicken legs 50 cents a pound,But the key is don't buy anything else ,Just stock up on the sale items .I am starting a huge garden this year ,I buy all my non food items at the dollar tree ,Only 1 dollar for everything ! Can't beat that ,I buy my laundry soap there also,And I go to Aldi for canned goods ,So far they are by far the cheapest grocery store I know of ,
Dollar tree had 10 packs of seeds for 1 dollar and I stocked up ,Just in case :)
For most of my stuff I shop at BJ's and I I've been keeping track and I've been even saving above that sale prices at the grocery stores. Its not much each week of course, but over the course of a month it makes life much easier. I also check the fliers for all the grocery stores within driving distance each week to see if there are any amazing sales going on. Then if something is extra cheap I'll stock up. Meat is definitely a killer though. I myself only eat chicken, which isn't to much at BJ's, but my boyfriend is 6'6" and loves his beef and pork, which can be extra expensive. Usually I try to find things that are not only on sale but also on managers special because they have to be used that day. It's becoming more and more work to save.
@mich28@xanga - There's no Chinatown by me!! I'm so mad about that, have been for the longest. I used to live in NY so I would go every weekend to get like my anime/manga stuff, foods & other goodies. I miss it. When I go home, that's usually my first stop!
@homesteadingtess@xanga - Albertsons have 10 for $10 sales sometimes & we went today. Our cart was so full, things were falling out!! We spent less than $170 but I think we can eat for a month if not longer. Not all stores do that so usually if we see sales on other things in between shops, we'll pick up the items. Usually things like bread, beverages or soups. Soup is crazy now too my gosh! Like $2+ a can!
@itscatwithak@xanga - I know what you mean. We have a BJs by us but no memebership. We used to go when mom dated a guy that had the card to get in. I miss buying in bulk. You could get food to last for months. I found videos of Martin Yan (a famous cook) showing people how to debone & cut your own chicken & it's pretty easy! It saves money too. Let me know if you want the video & I'll PM it to you. I think people may assume I'm crazy if I just leave it up here. XD
@MyFreedomWings@xanga - No chips on sale!! GGRRR...You think they would have them with the 10 for $10. Oh well...They'll go back to being treats for a while...I may break down & buy some tomorrow since I have sour cream to make dip!