I bought some Walmart Great Value 2 pound packages of real ham and turkey and my family think's it sucks b/c they cost about $5.00/each!!

I really am a f-- tight-as- b/c it frost's me to pay $6 or $8/pound for the high-priced Deli stuff.

How screwed up am I here to try to save a buck or more AND I'm sitting here now eating both fine as I type!!

Same way with the inexpensive store can goods brands too..........

I'd like to have three great looking girl-friends living in the house for fun and comfort to waste money on as well as drink 50 year old booze BUT I don't b/c I try to support my family the best I think I can so what's going on???

Not happy at all..............

pdq67

Man Pdq I feel you on this one. The way I see it is, people always have a place in their budget that they don't skimp on and this is the one place for me. I see it all the time on this site "dont skimp on the fuel system, pistons...". I do anyways because I can't enjoy this hobby and sucessfully raise a family at the same time without compromising something. My little ones are picky about what foods they eat, and love fruits and veggies. Sometimes I pay more for something that I know has less or no preservatives just because it makes me feel good about their well being. Will they live another 5-10 years because of it? I doubt it. Will it help them get into Harvard? Doubt it. Still I feel like i should pay the extra dollar for the more health foods for them. I am in no way preaching to ya. I eat terribly and drink beer more than I should, but when I go to the grocery store I get what I think is best for my girls. Once in a while I get the cheap stuff like you did and often I find myself eating it all myself. Is that why I may not live to be 100 and didn't get into Harvard?
One of my goals in life is to live in a way that I am able to leave something for my girls. I often ask myself when I am being cheap... am I doing this for myself or for my girls. Geeeeze, I am trying to take this way too far. Your doing a grea job Pdq and they love you for it. Things are just different than they were years ago. Either way, no good hard working man should feel as guilty as we do just trying to make the best decisions for our familys. DON'T LET IT GET TO YOU. D

pdq67 there is something wrong because you and I are shopping in the first place!!!!

why even tell them what the stuff cost? I know the wife buys all kinds if the "store brand" items. She usually looks for the "lean" selects in meats (you'd never know looking at us) but still looks for the best price. Since she is a homemaker I don't have to do much shopping, but I have pushed a shopping cart or two... :yes:

PDQ, at least the stuff isn't going to waste...

PDQ, keep your chin up. Being tight with money as to feed your family, have a decent roof overhead,and warmth in the winter is the right thing.

Well, I thought about keeping my mouth shut, but couldn't do it. My husband is the one who doesn't do store brands in any way, shape or form. It is actually kind of funny. He goes to the store and spends 100.00 and comes home with one bag, all name brand. Then complains because there is nothing to eat arouond the middle of the week. If I go and spend the same 100.00 we end up with food for the week and then some. There is nothing wrong with store brands. If my kids see me making something with store brands, they may choose not to eat. Too bad. I don't run a restaurant and prepare one meal.

Thanks everybody..

I needed some reassuring that it's OK to be "FRUGAL".

I guess my problem is that I will eat darn near anything so high-priced crap unless it's LOBSTER just doesn't turn me on!

Heck, I'd rather eat a good Chuck Steak than a Top Sirlion if it's cooked right and since I'm pretty much cooking everything I eat anyway, I eat it.

It's like my commuter corn-popper, I'd love to daily drive my car, but I also love the extra money that's still in my billfold at the end of the week that I can spend on other stuff I need/want instead of on gas to feed my big engine..

Suckers too cheap for the family tho..

Rant off.. Have a nice cold and wet windy day............

At least it's not SNOWING yet??

pdq67

Paul...
I don't mind store brands on things that taste good. We will try them first and if they are ok, then we continue to purchase them. If not, we go back to the regular brand name stuff. If you tried to trick them by putting the Walmart stuff in the empty Deli wrap, it may change their minds :) As stated by Mary Beth, A $ 100 bag of brand name food doesn't cut it. I spend from $ 120-$140 a week here for food and Price Rite yeilds 15 bags for that money vs 6 for Shaws. You are not being mean, you are being frugal and if the food is good enough tasting, they should not complain. Heck, if my kids complain about it, its not bought again however neither is the brand name of the same item. :)

Kev

Amen Sister!!! :thumbsup:
Well, I thought about keeping my mouth shut, but couldn't do it. My husband is the one who doesn't do store brands in any way, shape or form. It is actually kind of funny. He goes to the store and spends 100.00 and comes home with one bag, all name brand. Then complains because there is nothing to eat arouond the middle of the week. If I go and spend the same 100.00 we end up with food for the week and then some. There is nothing wrong with store brands. If my kids see me making something with store brands, they may choose not to eat. Too bad. I don't run a restaurant and prepare one meal.

So buy them a NAME brand jar of peanut butter and a NAME brand loaf of bread, and if your really feeling generous get a NAME brand of jelly too, and then tell them there is the food budget for the week ;)

Sure, we would all love to drive fancy cars, live in big beautiful houses, and have steak and lobster and what not to eat all the time. Unfortunately for most of us, reality says otherwise. I do the majority of the shopping in our house, and it seems like every time I go to the store the price of groceries just keeps going up every week. A few certain items I won't skimp on, but for the most part its store brands for us too.

I expect food prices are going to go up considerably this year. Not only because of the crop freezes in Florida and California, but also because of the severe drought we had last year in Oklahoma, Texas, Colorado, Kansas, etc. Hay crops were non existant in 2006...MANY ranchers in these area's ended up selling off whole herds of cattle because they simply couldn't feed them. Hay prices tripled early this winter compared to last winter, but after a while you couldn't buy hay at any price.

We buy exclusively No Name brand steaks and chicken frozen stuff and find it every bit as good as name brand. The Mrs. actually finds it on sale too, sometimes buy 3 packs of 4 steaks and get another pack of 4 for free :) thats not being frugal, its smart :thumbsup: Paul

Pay close attention to the labels. You'll find in many cases that generic brands are made by a name brand company then packaged with the company or store name resulting in a cheaper price for the same stuff.

The problem is not the food or being frugal..
The problem is the kids..

PDQ - you are not doing anything wrong.
You are trying to support your family the best you can, and I applaud you. :hurray:
Children are evil, My wife and I sold all of ours..
Kids have no clue what's involved with supporting a family and they do need to bitch about something.
You should be thankful they are complaining about something as petty as food,
and not demanding the latest Nikes, or a cell phone, or a new car, or ..........

They don't have to like what you buy, hell they don't even have to eat it..
In fact, if they don't like it, they can do the shopping for you once in a while..
Let them see how far $100 goes..
If they don't like how much money you give them, maybe they can start delivering papers or find income some other way.

You are not feeling appreciated, and they have no concept what you do for them.
You can try to communicate the experience and decisions, or put up with their whinning,
but you are doing the best you can, with the time and money you have.
Do they go shopping with you?
Do they understand the concept of a grocery list and the whole budget thing?

Sorry guys,
I am going against the grain on this one. I love to eat and when I eat I want it to taste good. Last week, the store was out of the good Oscar Meyer bacon so I bought a package of the store brand ...... IT SUCKED !! Same goes for almost everything else I have tried. There are a few that are ok, but on the whole the store brands just do not taste as good as the "real" stuff.

There are some things that dont matter, paper goods seem to all be pretty good, etc but when it comes to food, I will not cut corners. There are only three of us to feed, and I bet the difference in price each week probably would not be ten to fifteen bucks.

Just my opinion,
..... I am going to go cook lunch now, this made me hungry :)

Often the name brand is packaged in the same plant as the store-brand item. If you look on the package for who or where it's packed, it is often the same as other brands.

BillK, sometimes a name brand IS better, but not in every case.
David

Tell them if they don't like the food you buy them they can always go to Taco Bell and eat with the rats.

Geez,

The last time I ate T/B, it cost me a pound of flesh!!..

I guess I need to get used to the $5.00 quarter pounder sandwiches and other crap like that...

pdq67

We just had a recall on peanutbutter her in Pa, and they were recalling Peterpan and great value. That tells me peter pan peanutbutter is the same as the wal-mart brand.

Hey Paul, Ill remind you of 'name brand foods' Im in the Navy.
Need I say more? I was RASIED on and now proud to eat bag cereal.

cause it lets me ask the wife for a new springer front end.......;)

Its absolutely ok to be frugal but that Wal Mart meat does suck.... Sorry :(

My wife buys our groceries by the sale flyer's and coupons out at the time.I eat what she cooks and never complain since I know she is saving money so I can spend it on my toys! My kid will never know the difference. Like written earlier many house brands are made by the same name brand people.The only place I have to have name brands is my toilet paper:D

I'm with Bill, I like good food and generally buy the name brands.
I did discover (the stuff was on sale for 1/3 the price of the "good stuff") that the cheapest bacon almart carries is also the best tasting in any store by far.

And don't you guys be feeling too sorry for Paul... I've been to his house, if he's frugal, it's because he chooses to be.

Since all the kids are out of the house, the wife and I pretty much buy what we like, (thats why I've put on 10 lbs :sad:) When the 3 kids where home, we would look for bargins, 2 for one, less expensive brands, etc. About once a month or so we would hit Costco and, "Loadup" The only thing we never have skimped on was beer, wine and vodka... got to draw the line somewhere. :D

While I was attending the "University of Wal-Mart" (aka U of Arkansas), we studied this quite a bit in my marketing classes. As mentioned earlier, a lot of it comes from the same place, but it is offered at a lower price due to lower packaging and marketing costs. Ever seen a commercial on TV for a "Great Value" product? Sure, some of the products are "premium", but for the most part the difference is negligible.



Children are evil, My wife and I sold all of ours..

This made me laugh :D

Hey guys...there is nothing wrong with liking our food to tast good. We all do, and there is nothing wrong with being frugal. My husband often tells me that he likes what I make. Little does he know....I guess it depends on what is being prepared, and how it is done. But I won't turn this thread into a cooking lesson. I'll let your wives/girlfriends handle that.

wanna treat... take SPAM cut into small tiny squares, mix with mayo and melted cheese, mix into soft paste, place on hamburger bun halves, face up on cookie sheet, bake in oven till the cheese starts to brown, bingo... excellent meal with all the major food groups and VERY tasty.
We also splurge at speciality private meat market for awesome steaks or stuffed pork chops but really gang, the NO NAME brand of filets is extremely good. 1/3 less price too. :)

We just had a recall on peanutbutter her in Pa, and they were recalling Peterpan and great value. That tells me peter pan peanutbutter is the same as the wal-mart brand.

Choosey Mom's choose JIFF!

Just because a product is made by the same company in the same plant as another does not mean it is the same end product.

As far as food goes we will use generic when we can, but it depends on the product, past experience, and what the product is going into.

I do most of the grocery shopping for our household. The last time I got store brand sliced turkey my wife asked why-it smells like dirty diapers. The time before that was store brand gren beans. The were obviously "color enhanced" as they were canned in a bright green liquid. They also had no flavor.

I'm not allowed to buy store brand food anymore...:(

I agree as I am single family income ,but with rising prices and want to have fringe benefits its hard ,but I will not let my girls have a choice ,as what there mother makes is what's for dinner, I buy what's on sale ,no prepared frozen foods here make fresh, I half to say the girls are good and never (well hardly ever ) complain what's for dinner ,being almost 15 and 17 they will find out for them self's too soon enough as they grow so fast ,and I hope off to college as kids need an education these days to just sustain a standard of living they have now, I did not finish college just got into a good trade and 30 yrs later still at it ,…well I know we had chicken rice salad last nite,so I think its soft tacos tonight ….And always Happy Motoring :beers: and a lite beer to chug it down...no bud lite here natural lite less$$$

HaHa, it's a good thing I'm not married and don't have kids. I will not buy brand name food unless it's on sale. I'll try just about any kind of store brand food and decide what is ok and what is lousy. But I will eat everything I buy because I hate wasting anything. I'm so ridiculous about wasting stuff that I re-use paper towels if I only used it to dry my hands. That's all we have at work are paper towels for drying so I dry my hands or coffee cup and keep the towel for other uses(working on the car, cleaning up spills). And I will admit that I have found some store brand food that really is lousy. Oh, and I will never buy ice cream or cereal unless it's on sale no matter what brand it is. Those items are way overpriced! Heck, I won't buy gas at Mobil, Exxon or Sunoco because they're overpriced! And I've never lost an engine in 23+ years! :D

Just because foods are made or packaged in the same plant does NOT mean that they are the same formulation.

When I buy groceries I use coupons and sales like a damn vulture. I hate buying anything full price. BUT there is a lot to be said for quality. Especially with things like meats, cold cuts, and produce. Who wants to pay for the fat on a steak? Or cheap cold cuts, that are cheap because they are all filler? I've always found that buying a mix of store brand and name brand stuff works out well, and if you can cook well enough then you can make a great meal out of almost anything.

Well, I bit the bullet tonight and bought a bunch of high-priced deli stuff just so's they would eat it!

I saved on what I wanted and let it go...............

And I notice that the bag of Lays Potato Chips I bought in place of Backers only has little chips in it so I figure they have started low-balling their "2 for-" bags of chips now too! So go figure...

And I brought the "green colored" green beans that I had NEVER bought before so this is NEW to me and it probably WON'T happen again!! Too many f-- chemicals in all this crap anyway, imo...

pdq67

You guys want to talk high priced food? My daughter went on kind of a natural food kick, and the wife would take her to a place called "Wild Oats". Go into that place and hold your a@@! Just a example, cashews are roughly 2.00 a pound more than the highest grocery market. I cannot tell the difference, and even put the cheap ones in the Wild Oats bag, and nobody noticed. I am sure many things they sale are better for you, but with the rampant pollution in this country I am afraid it may not help. Now how about some brauts and fries?

You guys want to talk high priced food? My daughter went on kind of a natural food kick, and the wife would take her to a place called "Wild Oats". Go into that place and hold your a@@! Just a example, cashews are roughly 2.00 a pound more than the highest grocery market. I cannot tell the difference, and even put the cheap ones in the Wild Oats bag, and nobody noticed. I am sure many things they sale are better for you, but with the rampant pollution in this country I am afraid it may not help. Now how about some brauts and fries?

Yeah really!

Someone I know has celiac disease, and a loaf of her special rice bread is $6.00. Talk about expensive!