A few weeks ago, I started looking at the USDA Food Plans: Cost of Food at Home at Four Levels. Though I do have a roommate, it’s rare that we eat together and the only thing we really share is coffee, so I’ve been looking at the plan for the single female, 19-50 years. I have to admit, a lot of months, my food budget falls right around the moderate cost plan. I know I can do better than that. That said, I don’t remember the last time that my food budget was under $200 a month. At least, not in a month where I was here the whole time. I think that my December budget was low, but I spent a week at my parents’ house.
Of course, this is a national average, so for some people, these numbers might seem amazingly high or painfully low. Either way, it’s a good benchmark.
I think that next month, I might strive to see just how close I can get to that low-cost plan. I’m not going to cheat and save purchases for the next month. And if I catch a great sale on something I buy regularly, I’m going to stock up like normal. I’m also going to be sure to continue to buy fresh fruits and veggies to keep myself healthy. I think what this is going to require is a lot of added couponing and meal-planning, both things I try to do well and end up failing miserably. I’m good about impulse purchases, but could probably shave $10 off of my monthly expenses by cutting that.
One thing that has helped my food spending is a new feature at my local grocery store. There are little hand scanners that you can pick up at the front of the store. You scan your membership card, and as you walk around the store, you can scan your items and drop them directly into your bag (either plastic/paper you pick up, or if you’re me, your canvas bags). The produce department has even added electronic scales that will print scannable labels, which is helpful when trying to not overspend on produce. Sure, something can cost $2.50 a pound, but I can’t eyeball that. And the giant metal scales don’t really help me a whole lot.
The best part about the scanner is that it totals your purchases as you walk around so you know how much you’re spending. I always tried to tally that in my head, but I would round up or down and end up losing track of things as I walked through the store and tried to figure out which size pasta was the best deal. Plus checkout is a breeze. Just scan your membership card again and all your purchases are transferred into the computer. Scan your coupons, pay, and go!
So for May, the goal is to tighten the grocery budget as much as possible. I’m not sure that I’ll get all the way to the low-cost plan, but it will be a good experiment. Maybe I can figure out a way to cut my grocery budget by $10-$20 every month without sacrificing much at all. Anyone want to join me?
Good for you! I periodically do the same thing — rein in our grocery spending to catch weak spots. I can typically reduce our weekly grocery spending by $10-$15 just by being mindful and cutting out everything that isn’t absolutely necessary, and it doesn’t feel like a sacrifice at all. It’s amazing how little things add up without me even realizing it. Good luck!
Wow–I didn’t realize that those plans existed. Thanks for pointing them out!
Looking over it actually made me feel pretty good about our grocery bills. Even with the numbers on the thrifty plan, I’m estimated to be spending about $450/mo on groceries. I don’t think that I’ve ever spent that much. (To be fair, I don’t generally count the handful of times a month that we eat out in that, but even if I did–actually, including eating out, we probably spend around that, maybe a little less.)
It’s funny, because I’ve always assumed that grocery shopping was one of the areas that I was almost certainly spending more than most people on. It’s sort of nice to be wrong!
That was so interesting! I thought for sure we’d be off the charts but we (myself and my husband) felt into the moderate category. I feel like I spend more on food than I *have* to but it is where I cut myself the most slack. I usually shop with a list and I don’t fall for many impulse purchases, but I do buy pretty much what I want. It keeps me happy at home and cuts down on the urge to eat out unnecessarily.
[...] My Pennies compared her grocery spending habits with the USDA Food Plan and discovered she may be spending too [...]
[...] where I’m cutting back and tightening the grocery budget to see if I can get closer to the low-cost USDA plan, as well as trying to eat healthier, that might be just what I [...]