Reply to Reducing Weekly Food Budget to $75

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[quote=Anonymous]Agree that reducing to $75 a week may be too low, but you could shoot for a reduction to $100.

At the risk of getting jumped on-do you really need to eat all organic food? It sounds good and it makes us urban liberal types feel good about ourselves, but it's not the end of the world to buy non-organic food from time to time especially if you can't actually afford it. I'd suggest doing some research on where it makes the most difference in choosing organic vs. non-organic foods (for example, see http://www.thedailygreen.com/healthy-eating/eat-safe/dirty-dozen-foods#slide-1) and figure out if you can make some price cuts that way. I'd also check out your local farmer's market and see if it has some good deals, particularly on fruits and vegetables. I find that each market is different and some can cost more than the grocery store, while others can produce a huge amount of savings.  It might be too expensive for items like meats and cheeses, but you can get those elsewhere or cut back on meat as others have suggested.

Agree with the posters who have recommended meal planning. You go to the store with your list and stick to it. Not sure how into cooking you are, but it also helps to learn about substitutions and how to make do with the ingredients you have on hand. I love to try new recipes, but I hate to buy a bunch of expensive ingredients that I won't use often or fresh herbs that go bad quickly. I've gotten around it by keeping potted plants of the main herbs I use (basil, oregano, etc), planning recipes that use similar ingredients for the same week (for example, use cilantro in burritos, then to top a thai stir fry, then use the rest to make cilantro lime hummus for snacks), and keeping my kitchen stocked with key spices and sauces that I know I use frequently (this makes it really easy to make a ton of different marinades or spice rubs from scratch). It might sound time consuming, but it's really not. I work long hours and commute 2.5 hours a day, so on the weekends I focus on meal planning and making sure I have what I need for the week.

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