I’m the grocery shopper in our household, not just because New Wife still hasn’t got used to the different brands and such in the U.S., but because as I’ve said before, there’s not much goes on in a Kroger or whatever that I don’t know about.
So you certainly don’t have to tell ME that grocery prices are going through the roof thanks to Bidenflation.
My average spend, or “ring” per visit has typically been around $40 – $70 each week (the upper end if I’m buying a little meat or deli), and it’s been in that ballpark for about the past five years. The only time it would be higher than that was if we were buying for company, i.e. when family or friends were coming round for dinner.
Now?
Since the beginning of the year, I can count on one hand the number of times that my ring has been less than $100 — and that’s after cutting back severely on quantities, buying smaller packs and / or cheaper, buying certain items (e.g. deli or frozen foods) less frequently, using all the tricks of the trade I know from my four decades in the supermarket business to make my grocery dollar stretch further. I probably buy, in item count, about 25% less than I used to buy; and still the average basket ring is over $100.
Now too, I drive about twice a week less frequently than I used to — combining trips to the bank, say, with trips to the supermarket or farmers’ market, trying to stretch the fuel as much as I can, and over a month, I’m probably in the car about a dozen times less than my old average.
Here’s the thing, though: gas prices go up and down, and we’re all used to seeing that. When it comes to grocery prices, however, they never come down. It’s just a fact of life.
Thank you Biden, you motherfucker, you and all your foul little government apparatchiks who have pooled their efforts to make America unaffordable in the Great Reset.
That’s been pretty much my experience here as well.
My spending on food has nearly doubled, even though I buy in bulk, usually. The only time it’s back to $40 or so is when I go to Sprouts and buy veggies, and only veggies.
You can save money by buying meat at Sam’s and vacuum packing it in portions. Their chicken prices are consistently half Tom Thumb or Kroger. You can also save money by going to Fiesta and Asian markets. Those store have staples (that their customer base uses) cheap. For instance, Sprouts will have limes 3/$1, Fiesta will be 30/$0.99. They are half the size, but really, how much lime does one need in a G&T.
Probably the biggest rise I’ve seen is in cereals. I don’t eat them, but Herself does from time to time. They have more than doubled. Better to buy from the bulk bins.
We made a trip to grocer the other day and unfortunately we needed a number of items. First time the bill topped $400. Big trips used to $100-150. Ouch!
Canned goods at wally world tend to be far cheaper than my local markets. When I go there I stock up on various canned goods. There are several local farmer’s markets but they aren’t cheap either. This is the first time in ages that I have not gone to a couple pick your own farms to pick cherries, strawberries, blueberries, pears and peaches in high quantities for canning or freezing. I hope apples aren’t high priced this fall.
The land I am on is too shady for a real garden.
JQ