$80 Food Budget per MONTH

Last time I went grocery shopping and tried to not bug out my eyes when the cashier told me the grand total, I reminisced back to our first year of marriage when I budgeted $80 on food per month.  Then I wondered,  What in the world did we eat?!  Now since I'm one of those crazies who remembers prices on things long-term, here is an example of some things we may have bought in one month:

$15    10 pounds pork ribs (sale item in a giant frozen box)
$20    10 pounds hamburger patties (again, frozen box)
$  6    10 pounds chicken hindquarters  (a bulk bag hiding under the pricey chicken)
$  3    6 cans green beans
$  4    4 one-pound bags frozen veggies
$  3    10 pounds potatoes
$ 0.5  one dozen eggs
$ 1     gross white bread
$ 1     hamburger buns
$ 2.5  gallon of milk
$  1    one pound rice
$  3    3 pound bag of apples
$ 60   TOTAL is that right?

Then the remaining $20 would be used on things throughout the month like milk, eggs, oreos or ice cream.  Keep in mind, there were only two of us, and this was six years ago before the economy went downhill.  Also, you'll notice that the meat is mostly that which is still on the bone and not as healthy (chicken breast is less fatty than chicken hindquarters, etc.).  But, Americans tend to eat twice as much meat as is really necessary, and when there is a bone in it and therefore there's work in eating it, we are less likely to eat as much.

Another trick I need to bring back into practice is this:  figure my food budget before making my list.  This way I won't make the list,then decide I must have everything and throw up my hands, saying "I guess we're going to spend $300 on food."  Once the budget is set, then I make the list, buying things that will act as ingredients in several meals, such as rice for fried rice and turkey rice soup.  After the list is finished, I add up how much it will cost, then start eliminating things that aren't necessary until it works into the budget.  For example, real butter is $3, but margarine is $1, so I sadly forfeit the butter (I try not to make eye contact with it in the store).  I also aim to save about 20% of my budget for milk and other impulse necessities bought throughout the month.

My husband and I have an addiction to eating out, and I've learned that keeping frozen pizza, lunch meat and burritos in stock can save us lots of money.  This month I actually quit buying the instant food because we'd been eating it so much, and ended up eating out way more than normal.  Feeling guilty about not cooking is not as bad as feeling guilty about not cooking and also loosing lots of money.  It's fine to eat out, but it does need to be limited.

Of course $80 a month is not possible right now, especially with two extra munchers in the family, but I sure could be spending less than I am now.