s/o full circle: grocery $

amandasw · December 2011

I think we had a clicky poll about this, but I'd rather have a discussion. I think my view on this is skewed and I'm also in a stage of life where I will buy the non-organic stuff if it's cheaper because I feel like it's a luxury to pay more for organic things. When we have two stable incomes and are 'grown ups' I will gladly pay more for that. I think the FCF is a pretty good deal because we only get it every other week for $37 and pretty much don't buy any other produce (which makes us look like HORRIBLE eaters when we go grocery shopping and buy 0 produce, lol).

Anyway, what do you think is a reasonable grocery budget for 2 people? Does that include buying organic foods? Doing crazy couponing?

I think I'm pretty middle of the road: I look for coupons/deals but don't do anything extreme. I do get FCF, but not a lot of other organic food.

merrileekate · December 2011

This is a tough thing for me to pinpoint - our grocery budget is all over the place. For most of our groceries, I bounce around between Trader Joe's, Whole Foods Fred Meyer and Costco. So one week, I might do a Costco stock up run and drop $150, then spend $30 for FCF or at the farmer's market. Other weeks, since I'm all stocked up, it might be only produce + a few incidentals and I'd spend ~$50.

For produce and dairy, I strongly prefer organic and buy organic almost exclusively.

For meat/seafood - I look for hormone free/sustainably raised. Local if possible.

For other grocery items - I just like to buy pantry staples in bulk. We usually keep rice, quinoa, couscous, oatmeal, beans, etc on hand and if the big bag from costco (or the stuff in the bulk bins at Fred Meyer) happen to be organic, great. If not, I don't sweat it. It's cheaper to buy that stuff in bulk and since we consume far more produce/meat/dairy than anything else, I don't spend as much on the other stuff.

CDMay2006 · December 2011

For produce we buy mostly organic (or non-certified/organic practices), and products from commonly genetically modified crops we always buy organic (corn, soy, canola, etc.). Dairy, too, we almost always buy organic. Meat is usually free range, but only one of us eats it, so we don't buy much.
Coming from an environmental studies background, i put a lot of thought into the balances of local, certified organic, non-certified/organic practices, fair trade, etc., but i don't know that that is practical for many people w/o that background.

To get the best bang for your buck, here is a cheat sheet for choosing produce. There is a list of the "dirtiest" and "cleanest" produce (based on retention of chemicals after washing and in some cases peeling):

http://www.ewg.org/foodnews/summary/

Dirty Dozen: Buy these organic

1 Apples
2 Celery
3 Strawberries
4 Peaches
5 Spinach
6 Nectarines? imported
7 Grapes ? imported
8 Sweet bell peppers
9 Potatoes
10 Blueberries ? domestic
11 Lettuce
12 Kale/collard greens

Clean 15: Lowest in Pesticide

1 Onions
2 Sweet Corn [but likely to be GM]
3 Pineapples
4 Avocado
5 Asparagus
6 Sweet peas
7 Mangoes
8 Eggplant
9 Cantaloupe - domestic
10 Kiwi
11 Cabbage
12 Watermelon
13 Sweet potatoes
14 Grapefruit
15 Mushrooms

amandasw · December 2011

CDMay2006:
For produce we buy mostly organic (or non-certified/organic practices), and products from commonly genetically modified crops we always buy organic (corn, soy, canola, etc.). Coming from an environmental studies background, i put a lot of thought into the balances of local, certified organic, non-certified/organic practices, fair trade, etc., but i don't know that that is practical for many people w/o that background.
To get the best bang for your buck, here is a cheat sheet for choosing produce. There is a list of the "dirtiest" and "cleanest" produce (based on retention of chemicals after washing and in some cases peeling):
http://www.ewg.org/foodnews/summary/
Dirty DozenBuy these organic
1 Apples
2 Celery
3 Strawberries
4 Peaches
5 Spinach
6 Nectarines? imported
7 Grapes ? imported
8 Sweet bell peppers
9 Potatoes
10 Blueberries ? domestic
11 Lettuce
12 Kale/collard greens
Clean 15: Lowest in Pesticide
1 Onions
2 Sweet Corn [but likely to be GM]
3 Pineapples
4 Avocado
5 Asparagus
6 Sweet peas
7 Mangoes
8 Eggplant
9 Cantaloupe - domestic
10 Kiwi
11 Cabbage
12 Watermelon
13 Sweet potatoes
14 Grapefruit
15 Mushrooms

thanks for the info!

dreamwinds · December 2011

Our monthly grocery budget is $400, which is big, but I think the only time we ever came close to hitting it is in September when we were restocking the house up post-wedding/honeymoon period.

Generally, it stays around 250 for a month and this includes staples that rollover into other months like flour, sugar, pastas in bulk and what not.

We buy predominately organic produce and organic chickens. We tried out organic beef for a while, but D doesn't like organic beef as much (so weird). We buy a lot of meat in bulk though, from CostCo (who has organic beef and chicken, though not pork I think), and tend to stock up once a month on a different protein, portion it out and freeze package family-sized portions.

We try to stay away from a lot of processed foods though, if we can, but both of us have an undying love for chips of any kind. But tend to only buy those on sale.

We don't crazy coupon.

We keep it at 400 though, so 1) he feels good when we don't hit it and 2) I feel flexible enough to do a fancier meal every once in a while.

I think 200 dollars seems pretty reasonable for a monthly grocery budget for 2 people?

CDMay2006 · December 2011

amandasw:
thanks for the info!

Of course! There's so much to consider (and specific information can be hard to get) that it can feel like it's not even worth thinking about it. EWG's suggestions make it a little more accessible (info and $ wise).