Today's Costs

Good bread (whole grain organic) costs about $5-$6 here. I freeze it and just a slice or 2.
rye is available in half loaves.
1 doz free range eggs $6.00
milk - $5.99 for 3 litres, soy/almond milk is about $4 a 1/2 gallon.
 

Cookie said:
Good bread (whole grain organic) costs about $5-$6 here. I freeze it and just a slice or 2.
rye is available in half loaves.
1 doz free range eggs $6.00
milk - $5.99 for 3 litres, soy/almond milk is about $4 a 1/2 gallon.
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We had a neighbor in Missouri who sold his free-ranged eggs in town. Having been aware of the deplorable conditions I saw at his "free-range" area, I got the distinct impression commercially raised eggs, chickens confined also under deplorable conditions, would be my preference, after of course, raising our own. Just sayin'. Imp
 
True, imp, free range are often not so free, but less horrific than the confined, here north of your border. The other option is to stop eating eggs altogether, stop eating beef/meat, stop drinking milk. Now that would be a very inexpensive diet. But veggies aren't cheap either.
 

Ameriscot said:
Milk is only sold in litres or pints here so can't compare.

We stopped buying regular milk and buy almond, soy, and coconut/almond milk in 1 litre containers. Price ranges from £1-£1.79.
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I buy Litre cartons of Organic skimmed milk which cost £1.10 a litre ( approx 2 pints)....at the current exchange rate that would be $1.71 US dollars for 2 pints..

Organic eggs are around £2.30 for 1/2 dozen...== $3.58 which equals over $7 US for a dozen

Cheap white bread is available from about 60p a loaf, but I buy organic wholemeal or seeded ...which costs around £1.50 a loaf = $2.30 ish US dollars..

So you can see that food prices in both countries are very high.
 
hollydolly said:
I buy Litre cartons of Organic skimmed milk which cost £1.10 a litre ( approx 2 pints)....at the current exchange rate that would be $1.71 US dollars for 2 pints..

Organic eggs are around £2.30 for 1/2 dozen...== $3.58 which equals over $7 US for a dozen

Cheap white bread is available from about 60p a loaf, but I buy organic wholemeal or seeded ...which costs around £1.50 a loaf = $2.30 ish US dollars..

So you can see that food prices in both countries are very high.
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Strangely I find many veg and fruits to be very expensive in the US.
 
Is that so Annie?....ours aren't very cheap either of course...not compared to Spain or Greece but can you give us an idea how the F&V in the US compare in price to the UK?
 
hollydolly said:
Is that so Annie?....ours aren't very cheap either of course...not compared to Spain or Greece but can you give us an idea how the F&V in the US compare in price to the UK?
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I've seen a green pepper for $2, a cantaloupe for $8.... Converting it to £ really isn't a fair comparison. The exchange rate changes frequently to further confuse it.
 
Awright, I just had a thought about costs of foods. Wal-Mart, here anyway, has a large freezer case as an "end-cap", as they call it, as wide as the shelves back to back between two aisles. This case is filled plum-full with seafood only. Prepackaged in heavy plastic, every single bag I took out and scrutinized had a whole lot of pretty pictures, assurances of quality, etc., and every one bore a tiny, fine print 3-word line somewhere hidden within all the other sloganry: "Product of China".

How in the world, given today's transportation costs, can this product be carried half-way around the earth, presumably safely, and sold competitively here? This boggles my mind! imp
 
Freight Costs

As of 2007, average freight cost expressed in $ per ton-mile were:

Airplane $ 90.

Truck $ 17.

Rail $ 3.

Oil Pipeline $ 1.60

Since 2007, costs have skyrocketed, but figures were not available for all modes of carrier, however, 2012 figures:

Airplane $ 136.

Rail $ 4.

Thus Air feight increased 51% between '07 and '12, while Rail increased only 33%. I still like the trains! imp
 
Kadee46 said:
I buy my bread in Adelaide (200 km away) I freeze it and only take out a slice or two as needed
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I bake a loaf in my bread machine and my dh has two thick slices for toast every morning. No need to freeze any! I buy a small seeded loaf with less calories to make sandwiches with, but I should freeze it as I end up dumping the last few slices.
 
I always freeze my bread..and use just a couple of slices at a time. It can go straight in the toaster, or just takes about 20 minutes to defrost to use 'fresh'.. otherwise I'd be dumping loads of it..

$8 for a Canteloupe?..wow!!
 
Here in the UK, the current health issue is Obesity. Some people will say that 'junk' food is cheaper than 'healthy' food (incl. Fruit & veges) so poorer people will eat 'junk' and become obese. I don't subscribe to this and recon that (at least here in N. Scotland) fruit & veges are very reasonably priced and widely affordable. Meat & fish however have become more expensive, so I have cut down on quantity, but not on quality.

Like some others, we also bake our own bread. We also grow some of our own fruit & veg and raise our own pigs. This makes pork expensive, but vastly better than supermarket pork.
 
We bake our own bread and if it starts to go a little stale, we make croutons out of it. They can be thrown on salads or in soups or casseroles.
 
Great idea Glinda. I do that too, and make breadcrumbs from my old bread butts, that I grind up in blender after baking in very low oven til dry. Works great and never have to buy them.
 
My mother was born and raised on the East Coast of Scotland, and after she married my father in the mid 50's she moved to the west coast where the 2 is very different , and also names for things are or at least were as well.

On the East coast ( now I don't know about today) but in those days a loaf of bread was called a 1/2 loaf, and 2 loaves were simply ''a loaf''...confusing I know, but not to her because that's what she'd known all her life, so the first time she went into a bakers shop in Glasgow and asked for a 1/2 loaf they looked at her quizzically and said we don't cut loaves in half...so she said No, I don't want it cut in half I just want a half loaf..so back and forth they went like that with a large queue building up behind listening to this.. until finally someone showed her that a loaf of bread in Glasgow is just one loaf. ..and not 2. She said she'd never felt so embarrassed! :D
 
Cookie said:
True, imp, free range are often not so free, but less horrific than the confined, here north of your border. The other option is to stop eating eggs altogether, stop eating beef/meat, stop drinking milk. Now that would be a very inexpensive diet. But veggies aren't cheap either.
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Veggies can, and ought to be grown by folks for their own use. Unfortunately, more and more vegetable stock has been genetically modified to prevent use of it's seeds to grow new plants. To me, that's a crime in itself! Years back, the stores had racks loaded with packets of veggie seeds. Come to think of it, I don't recall seeing any lately. Are they gone? imp
 
Originating from the west coast, I grew up with a 'Plain' loaf and a 'Pan' loaf. Of course, if you went over to N.Ireland, you could also buy a 'Veda' loaf and soda bread. A loaf I haven't seen for a while was one we colloquially called a 'Batchelor load'. This was cylindrical with a ridged surface, allegedly so that a single man could cut a straight slice! However, I digress and the cost of a loaf doesn't trouble me too much.

I'm cynical about the value of 'organic' food and I'm not inclined to pay the extra for it. Keeping our own livestock has been an education, so now I try to be sure of the source of the food that I buy and how it's been treated. Meat is expensive, but often the supermarkets have deals and I can spot a reduced price sticker at 50 paces! At least roadkill is still the same price - free!
 
Loads here, in supermarkets, garden centres etc.
unfortunately, some of us don't have a lot of room....
i grow some herbs, and have grown tomatoes....but as I go away this week, there is not much point this year.
 
Was out doing errands/grocery shopping this morning.

kROGER

Two 2-ltrs of Pepsi $2.00 (on sale $1/each)
Loaf Schwebels wheat bread $1.99
14 lb cat litter $5.49
3.5 lb dry cat food $2.99
10 cans wet cat food $5.00
1 lb ground chuck $3.69
pkg 10 (plump) boneless, skinless chicken thighs $5.07
pkg of 4 nitelite bulbs $1.49
6 rolls store brand bath tissue, double ply $2.99
tax $0.79

SUB-TOTAL $31.50
Minus coupons -2.60

TOTAL $28.90
 
hollydolly said:
My god AC that was cheap..wow!! I don't know what kroger is, is it a discount grocery shop?
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Holly, bite your tongue! Kroger is the second largest supermarket chain in the USA. :) The headquarters in in Ohio - the midwestern state I live in (which if you look at a map, is south of Michigan).
 
imp said:
Veggies can, and ought to be grown by folks for their own use. Unfortunately, more and more vegetable stock has been genetically modified to prevent use of it's seeds to grow new plants. To me, that's a crime in itself! Years back, the stores had racks loaded with packets of veggie seeds. Come to think of it, I don't recall seeing any lately. Are they gone? imp
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Most can't grown their own. We have plenty of space but although our soil grows tons of flowers, trees, shrubs, etc, the soil is not good for growing vegetables. Besides which, who is going to take care of the veggies when we are traveling?
 
applecruncher said:
Holly, bite your tongue! Kroger is the second largest supermarket chain in the USA. :) The headquarters in in Ohio - the midwestern state I live in (which if you look at a map, is south of Michigan).
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LOL well I just thought that at those low prices it might be a discount grocery supermarket. We certainly have a few here that are very popular with people on a fixed income
 
I was lucky to catch several sales, things on special (chicken, gr chuck, Pepsi). I always get Haagen Daas, eggs, and bacon free at Kroger (coupons). There is another store I like that is higher priced but has a WONDERFUL deli and bakery :) But Kroger is closer. I don't care for Walmart groceries, but household things are fine.
 

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