June was an interesting month spending-wise because it combined travel and hosting friends. We spent a week out west at Vermejo and Great Sand Dunes National Park and while I counted our grocery pick up out there, I am not tracking any eating out in this exercise. We also spent a weekend in Georgia with my family. Then we got home and I needed to restock the fridge, plus we hosted friends for the 4th, so I was at the store a lot.
- Food Lion: $5.00
- Walmart: $29.13
- Whole Foods: $100.39
- Publix: $147.66
- Lowe’s Foods: $147.98
- Costco: $478.84
- GRAND TOTAL: $909.00
This is the second month in a row we’ve been under $1,000 and I’m really pleased by that. However, I don’t get overly celebratory about it because I’m not closely tracking eating out. Though we haven’t increased eating out a lot, we’ve been treated to some meals while traveling (thank you Mema, Grandpa, and Nana!) and we were gone 10ish days throughout the month. So I don’t feel it’s super reflective of a full month of home grocery buying and consuming. However, it does balance out a little that we hosted friends because of course you spend a bit more on food to do that (but I love visitors so I’m thrilled that we can do that).
Still, under $1,000 feels good. But to get a more clear picture now that we’re halfway through the year, and through my tracking exercise, let’s see what out monthly average is:
- January: $1,279.10
- February: $1,598.03
- March: $1,373.85
- April: $2,259.27 *half cow*
- May: $941.53
- June: $909.00
- GRAND TOTAL: $8,360.78
- Monthly average: $1,393.46
Like I mentioned initially, this is truly an exercise of observance. Do I find myself wanting to make changes to keep our bill lower? Absolutely! However, any first step in budgeting is just tracking to see what you are spending. So with that, I’m not trying to judge our spending, but just observe and analyze.
Honestly, the spending sounds high to me, but high compared to what? I’m not sure. What I used to spend? Yes. Other families? Yes and no; I know people that spend way less than me and others that spend way more based on their own family’s needs and eating habits. It’s really hard to compare to other families because of that reason.
And yet I never feel like with this spending that we have a surplus of food. I’m good at not having food waste, so we eat 99% of what we bring into the house, but with that I rarely have extra snacks and such sitting around. This means I spend more time in the kitchen prepping meals, which I’m OK with, but it just seems like our spending should go further.
I am not am alarmist but it does blow my mind when I read articles and see videos from farmers saying that we haven’t even hit the high inflation for food yet. I hear that eggs could go up to $1/each and chicken to $17.00/lb. Food inflation this year is expected to exceed historical averages and the inflation rate for 2021 (source).
I know I’m fortunate that I am able to feed my family the way I do. I sometimes get uncomfortable sharing these spending recaps because I know we are most likely heading towards harder economic times as a country and putting food on the table will be a real strain on many families. I’m using this as a catalyst to embark on my goal of getting more involved with Feed NC. We’ve given to them financially and through food donations for a couple years, but I feel my heart being pulled to do more. I am going to start with signing up for a tour, which the girls and I will go on early next week to learn more. If you are local and interested, they do a great job of listing out opportunities on their website.
We are home throughout the month of July, so I’m interested to see how that impacts my spending. Will I be able to make more from scratch because we’re around? Will I spend more because we’ll be eating all three meals of the day at home? We shall see! I’m back to sharing most of my dinner preparation again on Instagram, so follow along if that’s your thing. If it’s not, I have a meals lately post coming soon to the blog.
If you’re up for sharing, what are some observations you’ve noticed lately in your grocery spending or habits? I noticed that the bag of avocados at Costco, which got up to $10.49 are back down to $6.49, so that was nice to see!
Joanna says
Love these posts you share and I keep telling myself I have to start this too. I do most of my shopping at Costco and Publix. I keep noticing things I buy or used to buy at Costco have gone up a few dollars. Mediterranean chicken skewers are around $18 a box, used to be $15, animal crackers $12 used to be $9.99. Has it stopped me from returning? No, even though I cringe every time at check out. We need bulk items, especially produce and we are really good about eating what we have/rarely eating out. Scary to think prices will continue to rise. Thanks for sharing Feed NC, we live in Charlotte and I’ll have to check it out!
Brittany Dixon says
I’ve noticed price changes most at Costco, too. I think it’s because I buy the same things over and over so it’s easier to notice. Things like chips have skyrocketed, too! Thanks for your comment 🙂
Stephanie says
I also track our spending and we very rarely eat out (maybe once or twice per month). Our goal is $1,100 per month for a family of 6 (but one is a baby so he really doesn’t count :)). We can usually fit within that, but I have definitely seen major increases in prices. Ezekiel bread used to be $4.49 a loaf at our local Giant and it’s up to $6.99. We haven’t gardened much in the last couple of years but plan to start again in a big way next Spring. Having fresh produce and eggs (my sister-in-law graciously provides us with unlimited eggs from her chickens) definitely helps stretch the budget. And I’m with you, I feel incredibly fortunate that (for now) we can feed our family with healthy food and lots of fresh foods, but it is so sad how expensive eating well can be. I’m hoping we can use inflation as a catalyst to figure out better ways of being more self sufficient!
Brittany Dixon says
Your hook up for fresh eggs is so fabulous! How wonderful! What kind of things will you grow? I’m with you on using this inflation as a catalyst to learn more about how to be self sufficient. I have SO much to learn with growing food, but I’m really enjoying the journey.
Kathy says
I really enjoy these posts. I keep telling myself I am going to track as well but haven’t yet. 😉 Thanks for keeping it real!
Brittany Dixon says
So glad they are fun to read; it’s been a fun topic for me to explore!
Kelli says
About two months ago I bought a 7# pork shoulder that was $40 the same 7# pork shoulder over the weekend when my mom was here was $47. I’ve started looking at discounted meat. I’m still looking for our same quality like organic but the store will but a discounted sticker on it if it’s starting to get a little old. Then I either use it immediately or throw it in the freezer to use later. Example organic whole chickens were around $17-$19 and I got two for $9.70 and $10.20. I’ll use these later in the year. My grocery bill is usually at $200/week now. We don’t eat out at all though.
Brittany Dixon says
Such a good idea to pay closer attention to the sales. I do that with Butcher Box (add on the sales to my order). My big freezer is so full now though because of the half cow and Finley’s food so I guess I need to start using some of it up!
Sarah says
I’ve started shopping at Aldi about twice a month to cut the monthly grocery bill. It’s not my fav produce or meat at all and I think the shopping experience is terrible, especially if you have to bring kids along, but I am impressed what I can save on staples like peanut butter, oatmeal, etc. if I suck it up and go. A 2 lb container of store brand quick oats is over $6 at Publix right now. I cannot justify that, but I also cannot bear to shop at aldi exclusively. 🤣 I have found some success going into Publix/Harris Teeter/Lowes WITHOUT a plan and just looking for sale items and building our week around that, as well as supplementing our groceries with things I know are cheaper at Target (shrimp, Larabars, etc.) But yeah, our grocery bill is usually $250-275 a week now for five eaters, (one of whom is a baby who is breastfed but also eats solids 3x daily), and there are certain items (like cereal) that we just aren’t buying anymore due to price increases.
Brittany Dixon says
We feel very similarly about Aldi- haha! I LOVE it for certain things- tortilla chips, salsa, cheese, etc, but have not had good luck at all with the produce. You bring up a good point though, that it could be a good idea to make a trip there (it’s not super close to me) once a month or so to stock up on those staple items. Thanks for sharing your spending; it’s helpful (and satisfied my curiosity) to hear how others are feeding their families right now.
Heather says
Do you always make sure the things you buy at Costco are actually cheaper? I grocery shop enough at other places to be able compare unit prices and sometimes things ARE cheaper at regular grocery stores even if you have to buy more containers.
Brittany Dixon says
I’ve found with most of the items I buy (avocados, fruit, tortilla chips, collagen, coffee, etc) Costco does have the best deal. Sometimes it’s the same price as the grocery, but you’re getting twice as much, so making sure I use it all so I don’t waste it is something I have to keep in mind (right now it’s a ton of feta cheese!)