Monthly Grocery Bill for a Family of Five

A favorite quote of mine that I heard from Joel Salatin, "You can pay the doctor or pay the farmer!"

For March I kept all of our grocery receipts and added them up at the close of the month. The grand total offered itself at $1029.99. At first I gasped.... then I thought about it.

5 of us eat 3 meals a day for about $12 a meal. Not bad at all considering we buy local, organic (most of the time) and the total included fancy cheese, beer and wine.

A few relevant notes:

• We eat out less than 10 times a month
• Beer and wine is a regular beverage around here not reserved for special occasions
• We have friends around for dinner often
• We have chickens that offer us our eggs and we do eat a lot of frittatas and tarts
• The garden was generous in the lettuce department this month-I day dream of a more organized and productive garden
• The husband and I work from home so lunch is included in the total
• I shop at a variety of grocery stores and farmer's markets -none of them being big box. While I am not too insane about saving money I am mindful when it comes to what costs what and where: I will buy a loaf of bread at Trader Joes rather than Sprouts if I can save $1.95 per loaf 

I find the cost of living to be a fascinating topic-especially where food is concerned. Clearly one can spend less on groceries but in doing so I feel that quality and freshness will be compromised. I would love to hear any feed back regarding your own experiences in feeding your family. 

Comments

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[Desi]

That sounds about right. You eat similarly to Josh and I (we don't eat out a ton and we pack/eat lunch at home). I also find cost of living interesting.

[Dennis]

I'm glad I don't have to buy your groceries. I guess it's not to bad for a family of five but it would hurt me to spend that much on groceries.