frequency of grocery shopping

[Luna]

I was just wondering how often people do their grocery shop?

We used to do it fortnightly however after we had our DD we went to weekly cos we were always forgetting things and I was home on maternity leave so had the time to do it more frequently.

I am going back to work 5 days per week in a couple of weeks time and am trying to figure out how I am going to get time to do everything, maintain the quality of the food/meals we have and have quality time with my family.

I was thinking that if I can reduce the frequency of my shopping this gives me back a good half day each week.

I'm thinking that I could do the coles/woolies shop every fortnight for staples etc and then just go to the fruit and veg shop on a weekly or as needs basis to get fresh stuff (or even get the fruit and veg delivered each week as we have some great home delivery places here that get all their stuff from the markets). I've tried having woolies/coles deliver before which was good as I saved money on impulse buys, but I often forgot things and couldn't buy any fresh/cold stuff from them as they would always provide things with a short use by date....

Has anyone got any advice? Part of this new plan will be that we will want to save money as well because the whole reason i'm increasing my days at work is due to financial needs.

How often do you do your shopping?

[lizlea]

We get our fruit and veg and bread delivered about every 7-10 days. But that company also do dairy/meat/seafood etc - I think you are in Newcastle aren't you? Saves HEAPS of time, prices are comparable and the quality is excellent. I go to the supermarket about once a week after doing a menu plan. Unless serious chocolate urges hit and I need to go again, lol.

[Bron]

i shop in at least 3 separate places but usually only go once a week to each. sometimes i'll go twice to aldi but not often. i pick up the stuff aldi doesn't stock at IGA and our fruit and vege at a family owned business.

[Pinky]

We haven't figured out a routine. once every two weeks a big shop at a grocery store. Then I do fruit and veggies twice a week at the local shop.

[mama_bel]

I shop at co-ops more than anything, so some weeks I spend $1000 and some weeks I spend $20! One co-op I do six-monthly (dry goods) and there's another 3-4 dry good co-ops through the year for different stuff, lesser quantitites. The vegies come every week or two or three - organic produce from Brisbane Markets that isn't available locally. Other fruit and veg is bought at the local farmers' co-op shop, local markets and roadside stalls. Meat comes every few months (beef only) from the farm, fish the same, from the trawler. We grow our own (some) fruit & veg, milk, eggs and chicken (meat - occasional) as well.

I normally have a list for the local independent supermarket which I get Mondays for the week's menu, when I drop the big girls at work. The amount I spend varies, depending on what we want or need. I buy toilet paper, sometimes some local produce, some bread, local cheese, junk/snack foods and drinks anyone's craving - stuff we don't get in bulk and organic. So if I'm very very good it's the bare minimum. If I CBF, it's all sorts of naughtiness! LOL

It takes awhile to implement a bulk shopping system, and ours always changes when businesses open and close, co-ops come and go, and prices vary. But bulk buying saves me time and money and allows us to have the best quality at hand all the time. And if I can't get to the shops, there's plenty to eat right here!

[Hailstorm]

We get our meat from the market we go about once every 3-4 weeks and spend $100 sometimes $120-$130 if we get seafood or if I'm having guests for dinner etc
We do the Safeway shop once a week and spend $100 on toilet paper, bread, milk, cleaning products, junk food, etc ham and things we get from the deli and that's included in the $100

I once set up a shopping list at safeway onine with intentions of getting it delivered I wrote down the prices of everything, then actually went to safeway and compared prices, the online prices were much more expensive then instore....

[Jamie]

I go to the shop too often!
During school term I go to the next town each week for Anna's ballet class and while she is in the class (no peeking by parents allowed!) I race around Woolies with the boys.
Once a week we get organic fruit and veg delivered.
Then a few times I week I duck down to the local supermarket and pick things up. And make a few side trips to the Health Food Shop as needed.
I swear, I must go to a food shop nearly every day of the week!

[Luna]

Thanks Ladies, sometimes just hearing what other people are doing and spending can make a big difference. Yep i'm in Newcastle and I think I know the one you might be talking about lizlea - is it fresh as fresh?? I'm about to sit down now and figure out whether setting up a weekly delivery through someone like that might be the go. Like Bron, I also go to Aldi each week as well!

I know a lot of our spending is simply cos i've visited the shops, see things that I want or on special and grab them whether I NEED them or not. Taking away the temptation (and the frustration) of visiting the shops should help by visiting less frequently :-)

[lizlea]

Yep, its Fresh as Fresh, I can't recommend them highly enough, we have been very happy!

[Savannah]

We do a monthly shop for things like toilet paper, soap flakes, etc. I think I picked up that habit from living on a farm.

Fruit and veg we do every couple of days and then markets on the weekend if we have time. We shop at a wholesale F&V shop, roadside stalls and a lady who has a fruit and veg shop in her garage.

[Pinky]

Luna, the one thing I can say about shopping on a budget is meal planning and snack planning. This is the key to saving money. When Brad wasn't working we had to be VERY tight... but amazingly enough it was okay. But we did make sure we didn't waste ANYTHING and so meal planning was very important and snack planning. Making sure I made cookies or muffins or something so when we got the munchies we weren't running out to the connivence store to buy nibblies. (we live in big city so that is maybe different) anyway if you plan your meals and snacks and ONLY buy what you have on your list and don't waste anything you can do amazing things.

Also being North american we eat lots of meat.... so to stretch our budget I made lots of lasagne and casserols.. you can tuck meat and veg in and not have to use loads of meat for that meaty flavour.

we also bought our cheese at costco when it was on sale and froze some of it.. which is fine for cheese you are cooking with anyway.

those are my tips.

[Hailstorm]

Oh I went to Costco recently...it was fun :2lol

[mama_bel]

Pinky, Aussies eat a lot of meat too, generally. :)

Menu Planning is a great help. At least your main meals. If possible, your lunches and snacks and breakfasts. Some do the lot, I can't. We eat from a choice of maybe a dozen breakfasts. We eat leftovers for most lunches, otherwise a choice of lunch options we've come to enjoy. I plan the baking most weeks, and try to get someone to do it for me, LOL. When she was little, Brit baked heaps. Then Immi and Abby took over for a few years. Now today I taught Bryce and Lily to bake right from scratch to clean-up. They've helped before, but this time I didn't read anything or otherwise help them find stuff etc. Hoping they get the baking bug to take over from their busy teen sisters.

If you have a menu, from there you can make a shopping list (base your menu on what you have at hand first - check fridge/freezer/pantry/garden). Go for in-season foods that are cheaper per kilo. But go for quality. Like wholemeal spelt pasta is more exxy per kilo than white wheat stuff, but it's way more filling and nutritious, so for our family a better choice.

After doing this for a couple of weeks you'll get the hang of it, and won't need to go to the shops so often, as you'll always have the essentials at hand for your menu plan. Staying out of the shops saves me money, but it's hard when I go to town almost every day!

[milkymumma]

I do the shop weekly, usually on a Sunday, because I work 5 days and Saturdays are crazy busy at our shops.
Mr SAHD thinks we should be shopping for our dinner ingredients everyday, but I'm trying to explain to him that if he can't remember to put on a load of washing, how's he going t...- never mind *sigh*

[Avalon]

hehe, and by "we" does he mean you? Shopping takes me at *least* twice as long with the wee fat man in tow, so I tend to leave him at home with the tall skinny man. I once saw a tv show called something like economy gastronomy, which compared shopping weekly to daily, and the savings (in time and money) of shopping weekly were huge. Perhaps Mr SAHD would like to sing for his supper... ;) Aside, washing is also on a timetable in our house, first thing in the morning, nappy wash on. Its become a useful habit.

We shop weekly, and do exactly what Pinky talks about - meal plan on a strict budget. I do aldi, woolies and the veg store. Make cookies and eat fruit for snacks. Just starting to make my own condiments (mayo, chutney) and cordial etc.

Yep, used to -hate- shopping on a saturday. And back in Perth you get *one* night of late trading, so everyone who worked 9-5 either shopped on a saturday or a thursday night. Blech.

[milkymumma]

slightly OT - why does it take so much longer to shop with the wee fat man?? mine doesn't make any difference at all :shrug

[mama_bel]

Mine used to wriggle and whinge and hate the fluro lights and want to feed as you're unloading the trolley onto the checkout and everyone would want to poke and prod and admire them, so yeh, I can relate that it takes longer to shop with a babe.

[moo]

I own an organic food service, so purchase as much as I can each week through that.

Otherwise, I go to a Coles/Woollies stupormarket about once a fortnight on average (sometimes less and others twice in a week iykwim)-things purchased from these include stuff like washing powder, eco store products, kangaroo meat, marked down organic meat if there's any, free range chicken, etc. Will also pick up bits and pieces in health aisle according to need/convenience (ie sometimes I will buy say.....salt if I know I won't have a chance to get to my usual place in near future). Oh yeah, I buy my undies there now too lol.

Organic butcher spend around $100 or so around every two months?? Am about to try a local "co-op" for meat, will probably spend about $100 a month I reckon.

Aldi-big shop every 2-3mths. TP, org tin toms, pasta, salsa, BUTTER (amazing value-they are selling org NZ butter for cheaper than I can buy it wholesale), mineral water (buying soda stream soon though so can diy), also get things like toothbrushes and a couple of other odds and bobs here.

[boy wrangler]

I've just gone to fortnightly shopping and normally spend about $80 - $100 a fortnight at Aldi, excluding F&V, meat, flour/dry goods. We go to the farmers markets every thursday for F&V, honey, local homemade jams etc and my limit is $50, but it is often less than that, I probably spend about $20-30 at the local butcher every couple of weeks and we get milk and cream from the local dairy for $7.20 every week (2l un-homogonised milk, 1l cream). I buy wholemeal flour in 20kg, oats 5kg, big bags of nuts etc and keep them in the freezer. I keep a running list of things we need that we can't get from Aldi (laksa paste, brown rice, rice noodles, food colouring etc) and go when we absolutely need something, but I put it off for as long as I can.

I meal plan religiously, mostly dinners and lunches and just make whatever baking for snacks takes mine/E's fancy. Compared to some friends (who spend up the $300-$350 a week) I feel like we're doing really well and waaaay under my budget of $200 a week!

[mrs fox]

Hey Moo, do you wanna pm a list of prices, I am lookin ginto all possibilities atm....Thanks

[moo]

it says I can't pm you??? will msg u on fb :)

[Luna]

oh wow, i have a lot to learn from you ladies! I meal plan and already do the aldi run etc however for a family of 2 adults, 1 teenager and 1 x 3 year old I spend about $200-$250 per week..... we have meat most nights though as my husband would freak if I served up too many vego meals, although he is getting better :-) I already bake, but don't buy anything in bulk as we just don't have the storage space in our kitchen (and our laundry is outside in the shed so no extra storage there...). I think if I started buying some of my baking stuff in bulk it would make a difference.

I've meal planned up for the next 2 weeks and am going to attempt to do a butcher run, aldi run, and get f & V delivered and see how it works out....
I'd really like to be spending $150-$200 max on groceries each week...

[mama_bel]

I have very storage either. I use food grade 10 to 20L plastic buckets for bulk grains etc. I have some in the freezer too. I store tins, jars, preserves etc at the back of the linen cupboard, and on the bottom shelf too. I got rid of heaps of linen to do this (stuff I'd inherited, but didn't use).

At our old house I had a walk-through pantry the size of my current kitchen. *sob*

[Luna]

I have very storage either. I use food grade 10 to 20L plastic buckets for bulk grains etc. I have some in the freezer too. I store tins, jars, preserves etc at the back of the linen cupboard, and on the bottom shelf too. I got rid of heaps of linen to do this (stuff I'd inherited, but didn't use).

At our old house I had a walk-through pantry the size of my current kitchen. *sob*

Where do you get food grade containers like this from? If I did this could I then store flours etc in them in my shed?
Trying to find some good cheap wholesale butchers now, so am thinking it may be time to ditch my little half freezer in the shed for a chest freezer....

[Pinky]

I have to be careful with grains cause we get those damn meal moths.. so I have to put it all in glass jars. So I try to buy what I need and whatever is left over I try to use up quickly.

[mama_bel]

I have bought some buckets from Mitre 10, but it's not cheap - like $10-$12.. I'm getting some from a local factory that have been used to store plain yoghurt for 4 days, then rinsed out with an eco detergent for $2.50 each. A friend is picking some up for me this week, which is good as we have 6 months' worth of grains etc arriving soon.

Some stuff I store in a steel bin (the old fashioned types). They hold a fair bit and are quite vermin proof. Good for me to chuck packets of pasta and stuff into. The bin was nearly $50 I think, but will live forever.

Pinky, what if you freeze the products as soon as you get them, does that kill the eggs of the insects? That's what we do for weevils and such.

[Luna]

I have to be careful with grains cause we get those damn meal moths.. so I have to put it all in glass jars. So I try to buy what I need and whatever is left over I try to use up quickly.

We get these as well....grrrr

I haven't tried freezing things first though, so this might be useful.

[moo]

a wise woman once said to me: "if you're not getting moths in your organic flour etc, then you know it's not really organic"

Pinky-freeze everything for at least 24hrs before storing in clean jars etc. That will kill most moth eggs. Pantry moth traps are good ime, but the little spiders that moved in to my pantry during my most recent outbreak are even better. They get to stay ;)

[lizlea]

Freezing things for 24 hours then keeping in airtight containers definitely helps with the bugs. Also means if you do get them they are confined to one product and not spread through your pantry.

[boy wrangler]

We've only got a small linen cupboard and no pantry so I store lots of stuff down under the house (laundry and garage area, concreted but not properly lined IYKWIM) I put the 20kg bag of flour in the freezer for a day or two and then into a big food grade stock feed container that I got from the local produce shop. I think it's about 60l so waaaaay too big, but it was all they had and I already had the flour in the freezer. I then keep a 5l bucket full in the upstairs freezer and use from that and fill that up from the big container downstairs if that makes sense? the other things I buy in smaller bulk (oats, nuts, seeds etc) I keep in 5l buckets in the chest freezer.
The new house has a pantry! Wahoo! and a big laundry with a massive liinen cupboard plus a 4 bay shed so I'm going to be in storage heaven!

[mama_bel]

I don't have much freezer space, so it takes me a week when our co-op order arrives to put stuff in, take it out, decant into storage, and so on through the week. It's a total PITA to get it all organised, but then it's another 6 months till an order comes, so I don't mind!

[boy wrangler]

if you don't mind me asking bel, how much and what sort of stuff to you get to last you guys 6 months? We're almost at the end of our first 20kg bag of flour and we started it on the 20th April (i wrote it on the calendar ;) )

[Savannah]

Do I dare mention my large pantry? One of the many upsides to this place was that the previous owners had converted the laundry into a pantry. All of the farm houses we lived in had one too, so I am used to the space now. I have recently cleared it out so that I can fit more in. We had quite a bit of HS stuff in there for awhile.

It's got power points so the dehydrator, bread maker, etc are all stored in there. I'm grateful for that because we have very little bench space.

[Luna]

Do I dare mention my large pantry? One of the many upsides to this place was that the previous owners had converted the laundry into a pantry. All of the farm houses we lived in had one too, so I am used to the space now. I have recently cleared it out so that I can fit more in. We had quite a bit of HS stuff in there for awhile.

It's got power points so the dehydrator, bread maker, etc are all stored in there. I'm grateful for that because we have very little bench space.


SOOOOO Jealous!! :-D

[boy wrangler]

so so so so so jealous! Our dehydrator goes down in the garage and the breadmake is a permanent feature on the bench. The kitchen at the new house has one of the roller door bits for the kettle and toaster and I'm hoping the breadmake will fit in there!

[Hailstorm]

We're in the middle of designing a new kitchen and one feature I want is a HUGE pantry perhaps the size of a walk in robe *squee* Veg has been measuring away to keep me happy :2lol

[boy wrangler]

noice kyls! definite pantry jealousy here!

[Garden Mama]

I shop monthly. Mostly through a friend who orders direct from health food wholesalers - so its heaps cheaper than shops, I just have to be organised. Coles and Aldo once a month too but I'm slowly working my way down and only spending $70 at each once a month now - I love it! I hate shopping so getting most in boxes for the boys to unwrap is an exciting event in the household - and spending such a small amount at the big stores feels great.

We grow all our own fruit and veg and eggs and fish, so we don't need to buy much fresh - we go to a farmers market once a month and get whatever fruit/meat we need to supplement.

I've ordered some meat from a local organic sheep farm and that's delivered and that worked out OK so I might do that again. We did just buy a second hand deep freeze from a friend to fit all our supplies!

I too have the 20 litre white buckets to store flour etc.... I get them from MIL who works at a bakery. If anyone needs some it might be worth asking at your local bakery? You'd probably be doing them a favour!

Oh and we have a REALLY small kitchen. We pulled out the dishwasher to store the flour/homebrew/oats/rice etc. Sometimes the white buckets live on the back verandah and we take smaller amounts out at a time to fit in smaller containers inside. Plus I turned the linen cupboard into a fowlers vacola storage cupboard - which sadly at this time of year is starting to look rather less colourful than a few months ago - finished our last jar of tomatoes last week!

[Savannah]

We went through a lot of jars while my brother was here that I was hoping would get us through to mid-summer. I will have to do more next year. Mind you, more trees will be fruiting, so we wont need to because we will have more fresh supplies through the year. I would love to get to the stage where I don't have to preserve anything! Dreaming, dreaming, dreaming...

[Pinky]

Pinky, what if you freeze the products as soon as you get them, does that kill the eggs of the insects? That's what we do for weevils and such.

yeah I do that often.. but I inherited the moths.. I've cleaned everything out so many times but I think they live in behind the cupboards.. the only way to completely irradicate them is when we get the new kitchen built.. in the mean time I do my best to starve them and not add any new ones.. sigh..

thanks though for the advice..

I do sometimes get lazy and forget and leave something out not in a glass jar and then I find moth cocoons on it.. yukky.

[jodiemiller]

I try to process all the bulk grains and stuff through the freezer too. Still can't beat the moths.

I have a friend whose husband does body building (don't ask) and offloads the 5kg food grade containers of whey protein he consumes on to me when he's done with them. They seal really well and stack really tidy in one corner of my pantry, so semolina, rapadura and bicarb soda can be stored in bulk.

I also buy from co-ops mostly - organic vegies and groceries fortnightly, grains and seeds 3-6 monthly, beef and lamb quarterly. We buy almost everything else at the local IGA, in bulk if possible. Still, we probably shop there weekly to fortnightly depending on the stockpile and our consumption of stuff like cereals, bread and milk.

[Stardust]

F and V once a week at the local organic place. The rest I try and do 2-3 weekly (toilet paper etc). Meat at the local free range butcher once a month and then do a big cook and freeze.

[jodiemiller]

Loo paper? Stockpile my lovely, you'll save yourself a fortune!

[milkymumma]

I don't understand, Jodie. Aren't you still buying the same amount over the same amount of time?

[Stardust]

Probably good advice Jodie. Just if I did that we'd go short on other things that month. I'd love to buy more in bulk but that would be the problem.

[jodiemiller]

You're buying the same amount for cheaper, because it's bulk, and on top of that you're only buying it when it's discounted. Then you pounce and buy what you can reasonably store. Buying is more opportunistic, and you're not at the whim of the supermarket pricing system. Depends if there's enough give in your budget to 'impulse' buy. I stockpile toothpaste and toothbrushes in the same way. Laundry detergent, vinegar, dishwasher stuff. Instead of buying one item at full price, I buy three at a discount.

[jodiemiller]

Yeah Stardust, I do understand. It's something you can build slowly though that gets more for your dollar in the long term.

[milkymumma]

Ah, yes that makes sense. Thanks!

[Stardust]

Makes a lot of sense. I might try just starting with one thing and see how it goes :)

[Hailstorm]

I cannot wait til we do the reno and I'll actually have room to store THINGS!!!! actual THINGS like dunny paper, and washing powder, and just THINGS in general!!

[boy wrangler]

I love THINGS!!!

I do the same, especially with Moccona coffee that comes in the great glass jars that I use as canisters in the kitchen once they're empty.

[Hailstorm]

Do you ever put candles in them and leave a trail for spunky boys to follow? :2lol

[milkymumma]

Do you ever put candles in them and leave a trail for spunky boys to follow? :2lol
Ok... now I'm lost! :confused1

[Joey]

does that work? I'm so gunna start drinking coffee! - actually I have lots of those jars already- how far from the house do I need to start the trail do you think? Bearing in mind I am in suburbia maybe down the street a bit?

[Hailstorm]

:2lol it's from the ad for Moccona coffee MM

Joey I think she made the trail from the guys shop to her house...so go find your spunk and then leave a trail from where he is to your place ;)

[boy wrangler]

I haven't seen that ad, I really need to get out more! might try it though ...

[milkymumma]

Oh, I thought I had missed a hilarious inside joke!

[Harmony]

Our dentist sells toothbrushes for $2 each!

I try and shop as infrequently as I can:

monthly grocery shop
weekly fruit and veg - just lost our local independent store so stuck with the supermarket for now, investigating options
weekly milk and cream pick up from the food wholesaler
lamb - home kill
beef - working our way through our first hindquarter of local chemical free beef
chicken - looking at getting free-range in bulk somehow

If I can stay out of the supermarket and not pick up too much stuff I can save up to $300 a month!!!

[mamma]

weekly f and v and grains at local market, monthly shop for anything else
we dont eat meat or dairy so that saves us heaps.

i buy whats on sale and store too, we made our hall cupboard the pantry! tis great

[mama_bel]

I just received my 6 monthly co-op order. OMG the thought of putting it all away kills me. LOL