Has anybody mentioned coupons? Most people on budgets use coupons. You can get a lot of stuff much cheaper if you shop smart. I even used to go to two different stores to shop their sales. It can ave a lot of $ if the stores are close together.
I didn’t price it out, but pasta and chicken would be on my list. I could definitely feed the 2 of us for $60, $30 for one person would be much harder. You have to learn to plan. You buy more frozen veggies when they are on sale this week and stock up on chicken when it is $1.99. If you bought the veggie the week before, you will have the $ to spend on the chicken. You can’t buy everything the same week, because it probably isn’t on sale at the same time. People who struggle more to live on the budget might not be putting the effort, or be aware of the concept of reading the circulars and making a plan.
I am spoiled and eat out a lot. I couldn’t do it because we don’t like to stay home every evening!
In theory you could eat at Mcdonalds for dinner for $2.50 or so off the value menu with water. Buy a loaf of bread (the store brand or outlet) a big box of cereal, peanut butter, jelly and milk. The peanut butter should last more than a week, so you could probably buy tuna or some pasta as well.
A year or two ago, DS volunteered at some free clinic (some “community clinic”?) in some poor neighborhood in his city. He once mentioned to us that if there weren’t any volunteers there, the patients would be waiting for an even longer time, and that was the reason why he kept going after he had fulfilled his “number of mandatory hours” requirement. (not sure if it is on Saturday or Sunday and how many times he went.) He is a “late” boomer in the area of community services because he was not willing to do any of these in his college years. He and his friends (a few of them from a well-heeded/connected background) volunteered their time regularly to perform at some church service in some “filthy rich” neighborhood which paid the performers generously, and all of them donated what they earned to some charity which serves the poor.
Some of his close friends in his college years actually started a church or non-profit organization in town which serves the poor just a few years ago (one year after he had been graduated from college.) He had some exposure to the lives of the poor likely because of this.
Actually, doschicos, one of our supermarkets sends me coupons for discounts off their vegetables, and $3 off produce if I spend $10, or something like that. Pretty routinely get coupons for lettuce, mushrooms, etc.
If I really wanted to, I’m pretty sure I could just not eat for a week. Though I understand that’s not the point.
You’re not really supposed to be able to eat on $29/week. That money is meant to supplement someone’s food budget. It’s really hard to eat on $20/week, but if someone has $20/week to spend and then the government gives them another $29/week, well now it’s very doable.
That said…
3 pack tortillas (forgot the brand but it’s not mission - the cheapest brand there) = $6.87
6 can beans (the cheap kind, can’t get the old el paso) = $7.74
1 onion, 2 peppers, maybe $2.50
1 8oz cheese (kraft)= $3.39
2 jar salsa = $7 or so (normally I’d like 3 jars here but doesn’t fit in the budget)
That’s enough to feed me for a week but it’s pretty boring, same meal every day, no meat. It’s bean burritos in case that wasn’t obvious. That’s about $28.
if I didn’t have a dog, my spending would be less. He eats about $20 of dry food every week, and we don’t buy the expensive stuff.
I’ve tried giving him more expensive food as it is supposedly digested better, but I didn’t notice any difference in the amount coming out the other end.
Too funny. Actually a few years back I did that cayenne pepper lemonade cleanse. Believe it or not I lasted 10 days! After the first 2 or 3 days you really lose that sense of hunger.
I could easily survive on $30 per week if I had to. I am not saying it would be the healthiest diet but I could do it. I barely eat breakfast and am satisfied with toast with hummus or avocado. Then I would simply eat all those things that I love but don’t eat for health reasons - pasta, bagels, hot dogs or a slice of pizza. Heck I could make 2 or 3 meals out of a french baguette with a block of cheese. All inexpensive but admittedly not particularly healthy foods.
We had two dogs and I don’t know exactly how much their food cost but I’m sure it wasn’t $20/week. I think it was something like $40 for the 50lb bag that lasted about a month for the two of them but I’m not sure.
He is 55 lbs but he eats a lot as he is very active.
I feed him Newmans & Orijen.
Orijen is about $6 lb, ( it would be cheaper if I bought bigger bags, but I have limited room) Newmans is $3.25lb on sale.
I spent even more with my old dog, as she got picky for a lab in her old age, so I was always trying new things to coax her to eat.
We like rice and beans though.
They are so generic, it’s easy to dress them up.
Well she was 16 when she died, and she had learned how to work me.
Although she had exhibited picky behavior earlier.
One camping trip, I cooked tofu bacon.
Smelled really good.
She came over to get a piece, but she spit it out.
After that, no one would eat it!
So if you aren’t a fan of rice, beans and eggs, this whole meal planning would be very, very hard. I am embarrassed by the thought that the amount of food we throw away (spoilage, poor planning, can’t bear to eat the last of that casserole) is quite considerable. We are getting better, but DH about flipped when I threw away a portion of salmon that had been hidden in the back if the fridge for a few days too many. Once the kids leave (less than 3 months until empty nest) the fridge will be less full so hopefully we won’t lose track of so many leftovers. Maybe then we can stick to a smaller food budget…still not 29/week, but maybe 100 a week for the two of us.
I also buy cleaners, HABA, supplements, and sometimes greeting cards, cookbooks, or kitchen stuff, as well as pet food, with my grocery budget. It’s easier that way, but I do check prices on my phone before I spend more than a few dollars on a non food item.
If you were really broke, how would you get laundry soap and sandwich bags?
i know you can save a few pennies by using handi wrap, and cheap soap, but dingy clothes and squished sandwiches make kids stick out even more than they already do.
I don’t do rice, beans, or eggs and I still managed to do it. Probably not in the healthiest way but it was enough to sustain me.
I also live in a place with relatively cheap food.
