I don’t know how they think we’re all going to survive with these prices.
Groceries will blame inflation and whatnot, yet they’re printing record profits.
That’s because the truth is the other way around. It’s the hoarding of record profits by the corporate class what drives the inflation
That’s their point.
Margins are down.
. So it isn’t the stores gouging you. Somewhere in the chain. Someone is though
somehow these poor struggling grocers can still buy one another for twenty five billion dollars.
That’s all debt. That isn’t from profits.
Their margins are low and declining.
The point being is the cash grab is further up the line. If it was the grocery stores, we’d see margins increasing. Food has doubled to tripled in many cases and their margins went down.
overall sales are up, prices are waaay tf up.
gross margins are down slightly, but they’re taking that 27.7% (vs 28.1%) from a larger pie.
profits are up.
Grocery has some of the lowest margins of any industry. It’s not your local store milking you and I doubt it’s the local farmer.
The point being is the cash grab is further up the line
It’s certainly not the farmers getting paid more.
If anything, the agrifood business that they sell to are pushing the farm gate price down, while at the same time input costs continue to rise.
I buy beef from my local farmer. His cost of went up and his prices have adjusted. He’s 3x more expensive but about about to quit because he can’t turn a profit.
I also buy local and they’re thinking about calling it quits. You work all day and margins are so low, they can’t keep fixing / replacing what breaks without increasing debt.
That is the issue he is running into. He has tripled the prices but his margin is lower than before.
I get many people want to blame the stores but this problem is further up the chain and someone is miking the system. I have two customers who are grocery store chains and they have said, the only reason they are profitable is they can’t hire people and they have to use corporate staff to help in their stores. I know the director of security has to stock shelves two days a week.
I am not one for the government getting in the middle of everything but they need to audit the supply chain and figure out what is really going.
Tell that to the billionaires who’s net value doubled in 12 months.
What grocery billionaire are you referencing?
Wife has been canning for a few years now and we have a pantry of fruits, veggies, and dehydrated food. She goes to the farmers markets during harvest time and goes to town on entire cases of tomatoes, corn, beans, etc. That will last all year for our family of 5. We also pay a friend to raise a pig on her ranch and butcher that once a year. Just got ours (over 400 lbs!). Pork is A LOT cheaper that way. Haven’t found anyone to go half or a quarter in on a cow. We also would need another deep freezer and don’t really have room for it.
We also meal plan weekly so we only buy groceries for what we need to make meals. That saves a ton of money as you aren’t wasteful as much. Oh and we either do pick up or delivery as you spend more when you’re in the store and see things you want but don’t need.
We make almost everything we can from scratch. Wife recently found a recipe for baked oyster crackers with butter and seasoning on them that make dirt cheap snacks and they’re fantastic. The store brand oyster crackers are $1 for 16oz. That’s almost cheap enough to not make those from scratch too. We haven’t bothered yet.
I’ve always been interested in the idea of canning, but it’s not really a thing in the UK. I know that veg is cheaper and gas is more expensive here than in America but still, surely it costs so much money to can things that you can’t be saving much? Is it only worth it if the produce was in season and therefore really cheap?
Definitely not about cost on the veggies. At best it’s break even compared to the store. It’s more about knowing it’s the veggie and water only. Or seasoning too if you like them a certain way. We’ve found corn to be higher quality too. Plus, where we live peaches are fabulous and better than anywhere else in the country so we get to can the best and control the amount of syrup used so they’re healthier. Sorry Georgia, you don’t actually have the best peaches.
Totally get that. Much nicer to know you’re not eating too much processed crap.
Jealous of the peaches!
I’ve always been interested in the idea of canning, but it’s not really a thing in the UK
I suspect it’s more common in the more rural areas.
Or with the city people who manage to have an allotment.
I’m in a rural area, it’s really not a thing! Especially not pressure canning with ball jars. People do make pickles and chutneys etc but those are preserved with vinegar and we use kilner jars with a rubber seal to store them. I’ve never once met anyone who has pressure canned vegetables.
When I was a kid (20 years ago) my parents would make pickles, and some assorted pickled veggies. Usually the veggies would come from a farm around us or an auction where you could buy trays of veggies about the size of a flat of canned drinks. They would also do some fruits in syrup, mainly ones that my uncle would bring us from another part of the country where him and his neighbours had fruit tree.
When I think of canning vegetables, cucumber pickles are the first thing that comes to mind.
Yeah and we obviously have those here although you could just make them in any old jar and keep them in the fridge. The thing that seems to be quite different in America to the UK is the whole pressure canning scene. We do have similar food but it’s all in tins, nobody really makes it themselves and I’m not even sure where you’d get hold of a pressure canner, you’d probably have to import it.
Yeah, I’m making a lot myself too, but I sadly don’t have the storage space for large amounts of food. And the homemade goods are often more expensive, unless you can get veggies on the cheap from a farmer
We probably aren’t saving much on the veggies overall for sure. Some are cheaper than canned but others aren’t. However, we know exactly what’s in it and we buy it once a year so we’ve budgeted for it.
That’s the way to do it. Raising pigs or cows, if you have the space or know someone who does, is way cheaper than store bought pork/beef.
Pork is the cheapest meat on the shelf right now
Depends on your location. Where I live, chicken is cheaper.
It is, and it’s even cheaper if you raise your own. Plus it’s better quality meat.
i’m gonna assume this post refers to the US’ prices.
it’s definetely noticeable in germany, but i’ll manage. my worker’s union is currently negotiating prices with my employer, and so far it’s looking pretty good.
but i pray for you guys, they really don’t seem to make life worth living over there.
Could easily be Canada too
Yes, sorry. I’m in the US.
I went to Germany this year and couldn’t believe how cheap groceries were, easily half the price of Canada plus your salaries are way higher on average
with a fair amount of help. food pantry, when i can get there–once or twice a month, for a bag of close or past-date produce and other perishables, and a few other things; and ‘leftovers’ brought to me by others a 2-3 times a week.
my ‘grocery bill’ hasn’t gone up–because it can’t. i spend the same, but get a lot less for it.
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Do not buy processed shit
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Do buy real food (legumes, vegetables)
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I mean it
- buy in season vegetables (cheaper)
- know the regular prizes, so you can detect real discounts from fake ones
- buy in bulk (cheaper)
- prepare several days food at once with that bulk and freeze it for later use.
- skip expensive food (usually meat) on a regular base when on a budget and bij it only as a treat/for weekends
When you buy in season, there is usually a lower prize as it’s in abundance as it’s grown in the fields instead of greenhouses. I’ve seen discounts that were the regular prize but the ‘original’ prize has been increases to make it seem a discount. When you buy in bulk (say in a 2 person household for 4-8 servings) and prepare in bulk you can freeze in 2 serving potions. (saves preparation time and it saves on groceries runs ;) ) Defrost food in the cooler, which takes about a day to defrost and save a tad on energy for the cooler, Also you save on the preparing side as preparing a 4 serving meal doesn’t requires a lot less energy then 2x a 2 serving meal. (including the re-heating of the 2nd meal) Save leftovers. Even half portions can be combined with others to make a fuul (and maybe even interesting) meal.
Also, when you eat meat less often you save a tad (when you eat meat, when you don’t the biggest saving is already achieved).
I don’t think it matters. An onion costs me $2. A McDouble costs me $2. I can get a whole processed burger for the price of a condiment on a sandwich I’d make at home.
You’re not using that onion correctly. Chop it up and stick it in something with other ingredients that you can eat for 8 meals, that costs $12 to make.
That’s a basic cooking and money-saving concept
I’m certainly not eating the onion like an apple lol. But, to your point, a sandwich is exactly what you just said. Pick up an onion, some bread, some lettuce, some tomato, some mayo, some mustard, salt and pepper, deli ham (or roast chicken), some cheese. Buying those ingredients would be… What $40? And you’d be able to make 8 sandwiches. Maybe have some leftover cheese and mayo. Perhaps a chicken carcass for stock.They’d be pretty good sandwiches too, but without bacon because we wanna keep it budget. Or you could get 20 McDoubles. By caloric value, 20 McDoubles will give you more food. You’ll die from malnutrition over a period of time, but not from lack of calories.
You can get waaaaaay more than 8 sandwiches worth of ingredients for 40$.
Sure, a lettuce sandwich costs $0.79.
I was curious and just priced everything out and you can get 20% more Mcdoubles/$ than sandwiches. 16 sandwiches with ham, lettuce, cheese, tomato, onion, mustard, mayo, salt, and pepper to 20 Mcdoubles. Calorie wise they are roughly even, I did not break it down by nutritional value but I would guess the sandwich would win on that. So you’re right that you can get more Mcdoubles for your money but I’m right that you can get almost 16 sandwiches out of 40$ (and you will have leftover mustard, lettuce, salt, and pepper). If you get your condiments from stolen packets or catch sales on meat you can probably even out the cost of the two.
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Left it all behind and moved to a cheaper country
Where did you move to?
South Korea. As long as you speak English you can become a teacher. Took me about 3 years to become comfortable with the language, at which point you can move on to other careers.
Salary is less but cost of living is way less. Also very fun. Other countries are good too, so take your pick. China is cheaper, Japan is a little more expensive. South Korea is a little grindy, so one of those two might be better. You can also go Europe or Africa if that’s your taste.
Were vegetarians and don’t buy any prepared foods or much processed food. Inflation hasn’t been uniform. Rice, beans, tofu, and a lot of vegetables are at or near the same price as pre pandemic.
My partner and I are mostly-vegetarian and it’s insane how much stuff still costs. Soy milk is constantly $2-3 a half gallon more than cow milk, veggies are expensive unless you’re only getting rice and beans, and don’t even get me started on meat substitutes
Rice and beans aren’t vegetables
Yes they are.
Nah. Rice is a grain. Beans are legumes. You are perhaps using the word to mean “edible plant”, which is not quite accurate.
There are such things as ‘culinary vegetables and fruits’. If people used scientific labeling on everything in casual language, we’d be here all day.
Tofu easily doubled here in BC since then
I haven’t reached the point yet where I’m personally dumpster diving, but I have a friend who has an inside connection at a major grocery store. They call when it’s time to take out the garbage, set it outside the compactor, and my friend swings by to snag it. It’s incredible how much gets thrown out. He preserves what can’t be used immediately and gives it away to those who don’t have a problem with the source. I’ve benefited from a 5 lb bag of jerky and a box full of dried fruits, veggies, and other items.
Otherwise, I’m always on the lookout for sales and deals. When I find one I stock up, like the one going on now at Amazon for Sweet Sue canned chicken that worked out to 78 cents for a 5oz can.
I’m fortunate enough to have a few acres and access to water at agricultural rates, so I grow enough produce to supply myself and a few other families that subscribe to my farm-to-home service. It’s enough to pay the costs and buy the grandkids some nice presents, but I ain’t getting rich off it.
food stamps
also, wtf is up with the food co-op?
All the wealthy retired hippies shop there. Their prices are crazy. All the employees make a smidge over minimum. Except the managers make a bit more. But still.
I’ve yet to go to a coop that wasn’t much more expensive for questionable quality food.
$8 a pound for pumpkin seeds. Can you believe that? It’s one step above what you’d pick out of a compost pile. Very nice and clean of course, but still. It should be dirt cheap. But no.
Stay away from prepared foods and buy more cheap staples like rice, beans, and potatoes. Shop the meats that are the best price per pound and know the highs and lows of fresh fruits and veggies to get better deals. Beef and fish have been basically unaffordable lately while pork and chicken have been more reasonable.
The prepared foods and snacks are getting ridiculous. A half gallon of cold brew coffee is up to $7. I can make it myself for a fraction of that, but it’s more labor for me. A bag of cool ranch doritos was going for $7 a bag… I chose some cheaper chips I don’t like as much, but got 2 bags for $4.50. A can of pad-Thai sauce is $12 at my grocery…
Yeah, chips are outrageous. I simply stopped buying them.
A half gallon of cold brew coffee is up to $7. I can make it myself for a fraction of that, but it’s more labor for me.
I mean, only a little bit of labor. Even with premium grounds, I can’t imagine it costing more than 50 cents to make a half gallon. As for labor, just throw it all in a pitcher, give it a quick shake or stir, then leave it in the fridge for a couple of days. Pour it through a standard filter. I use the basket from my regular coffee maker.
Making your own cold brew is one of the most cost-efficient DIY foods out there.
I’ve been making cold brew with an in-jar filter that is more complicated than it should be but still not hard except for the pre planning for a few days in advance when I’m traveling for work. I’m definitely going to try it the way you describe though.
Is it cheaper to make your own?
Much
Almost always cheaper to make your own anything.
I continue to be spoiled by Costco’s low prices. Seriously, check them out if you can.
I also imagine that similar wholesale clubs also have lower prices, but I cannot say from 1st hand experience.
It’s low per unit, but high up front. And you gotta hope you don’t get tired of whatever you bought
Aldi is also great if you’ve got one near you and are not able (or don’t need) to buy in bulk.
If you haven’t shopped there before, they’re a German based chain that’s spread across the rest of Europe and a lot of North America and almost-only sells their own store-brand products. Their prices are similar to Walmart and Kroger store brand but, IMO, they’re of much better quality. As a person with ADHD, I find shopping there to be much less anxiety inducing… it’s a grocery store the size of a Walgreens. If I need pickles, there’s one brand with five different cuts in three flavors; there’s only two kinds of ketchup, six kinds of fruit juice, four different laundry detergents… one kind of paper plates. Also, the cashiers are scary fast.
I can complete my weekly shop in like twenty minutes without a headache or back pain. It’s genuinely like someone designed a grocery store just for me and it’s cheap AF… just remember to bring your own reusable bags and a quarter. You’ll need a quarter to unlock the shopping cart from the rack. You get your coin back when you return your cart like a civilized human being. They have paper bags for sale at the register for like 28¢ if you forget to bring your own.
I agree, Aldi is great. Especially for 1-2 person households.
We are almost exclusively Costco and WinCo for groceries. They are consistently the best places to go, price-wise.
That said, I’m getting really fucking tired of corporate greed making hard to live.
Costco is great, but I have to force myself to shop without a cart to prevent me from buying stuff I don’t need (so I only get the essentials that I can carry).
Getting 1.5kg of cereal lasts me way longer which is amazing, when the normal grocery stores have “family size” boxes that have just been shrinking and shrinking.
I buy staples as cheaply as I can, and most other things I only buy on sale. Plan my cooking for the week around that.
Starting with as raw an ingredient as I can. Processed foods adds a lot to the price per calorie. So I start with raw ingredients which is a ton cheaper, and then cook it from there.
Plus my stuff tastes like I want so that’s great.
Rice, brother. Lots of rice.
