fairystar32 Posted November 24, 2012 Share Posted November 24, 2012 (edited) We spend $300-350 a month just on meat. We are a family of 6 though with our eldest being 18 and eating more than both me and DH put together. I am very fussy with food though, rather spend more on food than other non essential items as its for our health. I buy our meat monthly from the organic butchers, this is also co op prices as I run the co op. I am also a member of organic co ops, so bulk buy our nuts, seeds, flours etc... coconut oil amongst other things. i spend roughly $100-200 pr month on co op stuff. I buy toiletries/cat food 1 x a mth which I allow $100 for in total and spend $150-200 weekly on supermarket essentials/treats, such as milk, organic fruit and veg, kids school lunches, top up kitchen roll, baking things and snacks. Roughly our bills for 3 adults and 3 kids and 2 cats is $350-400 pr week including beer. We make most of our meals from scratch, except organic pasatta and chilli con carnie herb mix type things, crackers etc... I make our own stock and soups. It costs a lot to eat lots of fresh homemade organic foods, expecially for a larger family. Edited November 24, 2012 by fairystar32 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bobbsy Posted November 24, 2012 Share Posted November 24, 2012 $150 per week for one person? I suspect you eat a lot of expensive processed food. We're a family of three. We tend to have one BIG shop at the beginning of the month were we stock up on things like loo roll, cleaning stuff, frozen food staples, etc. After that, we certainly spend less than $100 per week, mainly on fresh stuff--milk, veg, meat etc. However, it should be said that both my wife and I enjoy cooking, generally starting from scratch with fresh ingredients. We also plan our meals. For example, the leftovers from the Sunday joint tend to become part of a salad meal on Monday then a curry or something on Tuesday or Wednesday. If it's something with bones, these are saved and make stock for soup at some point too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tisme Posted November 24, 2012 Share Posted November 24, 2012 Thank you Tisme my parents spend about $170 a week but always have a few nice things for the grandkids lol so they love going there. I have 2 kids and the lunches,recess after school snacks for them and friends it adds up, I was starting to think all I bought was crap from what others said but I have a few nice thing, I get a lot of dairy,fruit and veg .Laney I only have the one grandchild, if I had more then my food bill would be higher too, lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndyW Posted November 24, 2012 Share Posted November 24, 2012 LOL no way im getting a straight answer out of our mrs but..... From what I can work out we spend approx $270 a week for everything. Food,toiletries,cleaning,laundry etc etc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Parley Posted November 24, 2012 Share Posted November 24, 2012 Tisme, I thought you were in victoria ? Tarneit ? Did you move ? Maybe I mixed you up with someone else Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tisme Posted November 24, 2012 Share Posted November 24, 2012 Tisme, I thought you were in victoria ? Tarneit ?Did you move ? Maybe I mixed you up with someone else Nope, been in WA for nearly 40 years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
newjez Posted November 24, 2012 Share Posted November 24, 2012 We love aldi. We have made the same savings in the UK by switching. The quality is not bad either. It does go to show that the major problem with food in Oz is the lack of competition. Sort that and you are sorted. Why don't they have them in Perth yet? I'm sure they will. You will just have to Wait Awhile! I have just done a weekly shop. This is how much I spent in ALDI, prices all listed. I spent an additional $25 in woolies getting cereal and other bits and bobs as I only buy what I want from ALDI that I have found cheaper than anywhere else local and still decent to justify buying. That particular shop based on my hourly rate of $41.50 takes me say 3 hours work to pay for. 3 hours work in uk on my old hourly rate from 4 years ago which I believe has gone down due to shift change was 12 quid an hour. $95 = 62 quid. I would need to work twice as long to pay for those items living in the uk compared to oz. Just converting those prices to uk works out like this: 1.25l pop = 49p milk 3 litre = 1.88p cordial 2 litre = 1.49p fruit salad large tin = 1.10p frozen hash browns = 1.62p frozen potatoe wedges = 1.30p frozen french fries 1kg = 1.30p 500g shreaded cheese = 2.60p frozen steam veg packs 450g = 1.30p stir fry frozen veg 500g = 1.30p garlic bread pack 450g = 1.10p potatoes 2kg washed = 2.27p sliced toast bread loaf = 64p pikelets 8 pack = 1.30p 1kg carrots = 91p 1 avocado = 64p tomatoes 800g = 1.30p cucumber 1 whole = 55p bannanas 1kg = 1.10p salad crunchy pack = 1.95p nectarines 1kg = 1.95p salad mix = 1.30p 1kg yoghurt = 2.47p (harder to find in uk yoghurt in large 1killo pots) marge 500g =91p chicken drumsticks fresh = 2.51p beef stir fry strips = 4.06p pork loin steak 4 pack = 4.52p whole large chicken fresh = 4.38p shower gel 1 litre = 3.25p baked beans = 57p pasta sauce = 97p stir fy sauce in jar like the uncle bens = 1.17p Don't know how much all this would cost in UK. I know food etc is much more expensive in australia and no doubt somethings are far more expensive in coles, woolies, i know avocados are $2.49 in woolies and nectarines are $5 after there special discounts is applied. where i paid 99c for an avocado and $2.99c for nectarines. So it does pay to shop around as prices in australia can vary by a heck of a lot. I used to shop like i did in uk when i moved to australia, just go to coles or woolies, i used to spend $250 to $300 a week in there. I got shop savvy and buy same amount of groceries from $100 to $150. I would based on this if i lived in the UK to spend for family of 4 somewhere between 60 and 100 quid to equal my spend in australia. We all talk about how expensive australia is compared to uk so i would guess my uk shop for family of 4 would be about 50 to 80 quid tops as prices are cheaper in the uk. The receipt above will be useful for any poms wandering how much groceries are in oz at the moment. It's an actual reciept with actual prices and not hearsay. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
devon67 Posted November 24, 2012 Share Posted November 24, 2012 great post....we shop at aldi aswell Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Parley Posted November 24, 2012 Share Posted November 24, 2012 I prefer to shop in an Australian owned store than a German company though. I did walk around an Aldi once and all the brands were unknown to me, and so I walked straight out again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bobbsy Posted November 24, 2012 Share Posted November 24, 2012 I've yet to be disappointed by the quality of the "Aldi brand" equivalents. They're pretty careful to make anything they sell acceptable. That said, we've had a bad experience with our local Aldi just recently. Because I'm laid up with a heart problem and my wife has a bad back, we've been watching for one of those robot vacuum cleaners--and a few weeks back, the Aldi brochure said they'd have one for sale the next Saturday. If you've not bought one of their "big" items before, they only get in a very limited number (probably as loss leaders) so you have to be there right at opening time. My wife got up and was at the shop about 20 minutes before the doors opened and there was already a queue of about 20 people ahead of her. As the doors opened, several of the people made a bee-line for the vacuums and 3 of them picked up 5 or 6 vacuums each. My wife asked nicely (to no avail) then complained to the manager that it should be 1 vacuum per person. The manager yelled out "only one each" but didn't bother enforcing it so the first people into the shop ended up with a stack of vacuums which I'm sure have ended up on ebay or wherever. A complaint to Aldi head office got an apology and a promise to talk to the manager but that was it--so we're only shopping at Aldi when we have to. (As an aside, my wife was pissed off enough to head to the Good Guys who sold us their demonstrator of a much better robot vacuum for only a few dollars more than the Aldi price-it works an absolute treat and, unlike the Aldi one, can hold a whole house vacuuming in it's collector as well as wandering back to it's charging station all by itself. Happy bunnies here.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VERYSTORMY Posted November 24, 2012 Share Posted November 24, 2012 How I wish. We have just been to the butchers (meadow springs, south of Perth. Excellent but $$$) then on to woolies and Coles for staples. Spent $80 in the butchers, $45 in woolies and $35 in Coles. It was some top ups for th Christmas cake which we forgot, dinner tonight of golden chicken with braised greens, followed by a chocolate pudding. Then breakfast tomorrow- sausage, black pudding. So $160 and I Ned to get food for tomorrow. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paul1977 Posted November 24, 2012 Share Posted November 24, 2012 In life you generally pay for what you get, family of 4 $95 bucks a week ..! Bet the meat is like an old leather boot, bread taste stale etc etc .. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blossom Posted November 24, 2012 Share Posted November 24, 2012 In life you generally pay for what you get, family of 4 $95 bucks a week ..! Bet the meat is like an old leather boot, bread taste stale etc etc .. I don't choose to eat so cheaply now, but you can make great food with cheap cuts of meat, as long as you have the time and knowledge to do it right. Bills add up when you buy pre-made food/sauces/meals etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
newjez Posted November 24, 2012 Share Posted November 24, 2012 I just googled robot vacuum cleaners - never heard of them before. they look fab. what model did you get? I've yet to be disappointed by the quality of the "Aldi brand" equivalents. They're pretty careful to make anything they sell acceptable. That said, we've had a bad experience with our local Aldi just recently. Because I'm laid up with a heart problem and my wife has a bad back, we've been watching for one of those robot vacuum cleaners--and a few weeks back, the Aldi brochure said they'd have one for sale the next Saturday. If you've not bought one of their "big" items before, they only get in a very limited number (probably as loss leaders) so you have to be there right at opening time. My wife got up and was at the shop about 20 minutes before the doors opened and there was already a queue of about 20 people ahead of her. As the doors opened, several of the people made a bee-line for the vacuums and 3 of them picked up 5 or 6 vacuums each. My wife asked nicely (to no avail) then complained to the manager that it should be 1 vacuum per person. The manager yelled out "only one each" but didn't bother enforcing it so the first people into the shop ended up with a stack of vacuums which I'm sure have ended up on ebay or wherever. A complaint to Aldi head office got an apology and a promise to talk to the manager but that was it--so we're only shopping at Aldi when we have to. (As an aside, my wife was pissed off enough to head to the Good Guys who sold us their demonstrator of a much better robot vacuum for only a few dollars more than the Aldi price-it works an absolute treat and, unlike the Aldi one, can hold a whole house vacuuming in it's collector as well as wandering back to it's charging station all by itself. Happy bunnies here.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blossom Posted November 24, 2012 Share Posted November 24, 2012 You can get robot mowers too. :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NicF Posted November 24, 2012 Share Posted November 24, 2012 I spend $250 to $280 a week on groceries, but this includes pretty much everything, food, wine, toiletries, cleaning stuff etc, etc. I plan all our meals for the week and make a list which helps to keep costs down. I do my main shop at Coles as the choice is Coles, Woolies or Foodland and Coles tends to be cheaper than the others on quite a few of the things I buy regularly. No Aldi around here so couldn't use it even if I wanted to. I stock up on things we use when they are on special as well. I do buy pop and coridal, but I buy Coles own brand which is pretty cheap. We don't get through that much though as the kids are only allowed to drink pop at tea time and only get cordial with lunch and as an occasional treat (once every two or three weeks) after school. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bobbsy Posted November 24, 2012 Share Posted November 24, 2012 I just googled robot vacuum cleaners - never heard of them before. they look fab. what model did you get? We ended up with an iRobot Roomba 530. It works really well--but our house is perfect for a robot since there are no steps anywhere. A single charge can do all the main living area plus the corridor that goes past the bedrooms--and it's picked up dog hair from our area rugs that our "big" vacuum couldn't deal with. It's movements appear random but it seems to get everywhere except for a couple of corners just too small for it to get into. Oh, and if left solo it can get stuck under out TV stand (but nothing a brick in the right place can't fix). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest chris955 Posted November 24, 2012 Share Posted November 24, 2012 I do have kids but I don't buy soft drink. Maybe very rarely in the holidays as a treat. They get soft drink when we go to maccas or somewhere like that though. But I wouldn't like them having it every day. Our kids never drink soft drinks, they might as well drink a glass of sugar water. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bobbsy Posted November 24, 2012 Share Posted November 24, 2012 Our 8 year old is only allowed a carbonated soft drink as a special treat--maybe six times a year I'd guess--and even then we buy the diet versions to avoid all the sugar. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
russ and claire Posted November 24, 2012 Share Posted November 24, 2012 Our 8 year old is only allowed a carbonated soft drink as a special treat--maybe six times a year I'd guess--and even then we buy the diet versions to avoid all the sugar. The only trouble with diet versions is all the sweeteners added to it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Parley Posted November 24, 2012 Share Posted November 24, 2012 Even fruit juice is not that great. Full of sugar. A piece of fruit is good and water is the best drink. Hard to convince the kids of that though. But whoever does the shopping doesn't have to buy all that crap. Trouble is I think the adults probably drink it as much as the kids. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest paulwbafc Posted November 24, 2012 Share Posted November 24, 2012 I prefer to shop in an Australian owned store than a German company though. I did walk around an Aldi once and all the brands were unknown to me, and so I walked straight out again. Nothing ventured nothing gained. It's unfamiliar at first. Just watch current affair with Tracy grimshaw when they do product tests on the big stores. Aldi has come up trumps many times. There management have an eye for good stuff fair play to them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paul1977 Posted November 24, 2012 Share Posted November 24, 2012 Always finding something to have a pop at aren't you! He has posted a receipt showing what he bought to show people real prices, from someone that actually lives there, you like to throw that line about. Who cares what he buys, the prices are the for everyone to see. LOL 80% of people will spend much more than that each weak..! Fact... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paisleylass Posted November 24, 2012 Share Posted November 24, 2012 80% of people will spend much more than that each weak..! Fact... And that's their choice. Avoiding Aldi because the brands are unfamiliar is false economy IMO, I've found a lot of the food there far nicer than other shops/brands. I love their seed muesli bars, that's my workday brekkie and I don't like any others from Coles or Woolies. Wtf with snobbery about what paul buys? Everyone has their own tastes. Seriously, get over it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Guest26012 Posted November 24, 2012 Share Posted November 24, 2012 80% of people will spend much more than that each weak..! Fact... And where do you get your FACTS from? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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