Paleo/GAPS Grocery Budget

[simplykate]

Just wondering if anybody spends as much as me....close to $1000 a month for three! I'm on a strict GAPS diet....

We get all of our meat grassfed, dairy raw and grassfed and I buy almost all of our produce organic and hopefully local.

I also stick to a menu plan and always take a list to the store, but I feel like I spend an ENORMOUS amount of money!! I'm happy to do it because I think it's very important, but is anyone else spending as much? If not, HOW in the world do you keep your costs down?!

Thanks!

[Goddess3_2005]

I have a garden and chickens and that helps. I work at a dairy once a week in exchange for milk. We do the best we can, but I spend $1200 a month on 7 of us.

[deditus]

Close - we spend at least $800/month, probably closer to $900 but including other household stuff. I don't separate my body/healthcare products since we buy them at the same place as our food. We are gluten free household. Dd and I are egg and dairy free. Dd is also apple and soy free. Really, I think many people (who eat well, I 'm not talking about the frugal people who eat whatever they can get for cheap at the store like boxed mac & cheese or ramen noodles) spend LOTS on food. I know pre-TF and dietary restrictions we certainly spent a good $75-100/week on eating out, coffee at Starbucks, convenience snacks at work, etc. plus a good $100-150/week on groceries.

I am sure this probably varies a lot by region, too. I know I pay an arm and a leg here for grassfed beef, but it is very popular and easily accessible. Where I lived previously, it was way cheaper but I would have had to drive at least 2 hours each way to pick up a side of beef.

[simplykate]

Bump:)

[Magelet]

I've been thinking about this. We don't do gaps but I think it might be worth looking into, except I can't imagine affording it.  We spend 400 a month for two on food (grass-fed meat and raw grassfed milk,  but very very little meat, with a grain and legume heavy diet. I don't think it's the best for us but it's hard to afford anything.)

[MrsBone]

I think it must depend on where you live too. I live in texas. I can get a gallon of raw milk for 7.50, a lb of grass fed ground beef for 4.85, and a dozen eggs for 3.45. Do those prices sound comparable? We are a family of 3 and spend about 500/mo, but I'm sure I could spend less if my hubby would give up some of the foods/snacks he cannot give up! Soda, tortilla chips, etc. Oh, and that includes alcohol. We both like beer and wine, so thats included in that. Some months are higher than others, like if we have to go to costco to stock up on things. I don't use grass fed butter, but I buy organic butter. Food isn't cheap, and shouldn't be. I'm glad I've been on this budget since DH and I got married, since now we are used to it and plan accordingly. He doesn't really care about organic, local, all that stuff, but he knows I do, so we do it.

[2lilsweetfoxes]

Gah!  I'd like to do GAPS for me and my son, especially.  But the cost is scaring me.  We have a family of 5 and a regular gluten-free diet is about $125-$150 a week...which is a stretch for us.  DH is unwilling to do anything like gardening and stuff like that.  We rent and can't have a garden on "our" property...though we could have a couple planters on the porch--but if I deploy, he won't care for it.  We did look into a garden plot last summer.  It was tiny and on the other side of the post.  I knew we'd plant, then "forget" about it, so we didn't do it.