We live in Canada and spend on average around $200 per week on groceries for a family of 4 with a bit extra for pets and preps. I haven't seen $15 bologna, and where I live (small town, rural) our grocery stores prices have dropped back to 3-5 dollars for 3 heads of lettuce and $8 for fresh store made beef salami.
I was pretty concerned about things before, especially last year with all the "supply chain/economy is collapsing tomorrow" stuff, but store shelves are well stocked, prices are affordable and sales come and go as usual. I'm not seeing as much to be concerned about on the ground at the consumer level as I was last year. Idk if that's a good thing or not, or what else I'm missing. I suppose it could be the calm before the storm.
Connect with your local farmers and get a freezer full of fresh beef (4-600$ for about 6 months worth for our family) and eggs ($3 a dozen from a friend). Find some local guys that do their own gardening and canning and sell it on subscription, I think that could be worth it too. I'm looking into that since we arent ready to start gardening beyond a few cucumbers and tomatos this year.
I should add that we often spend less because we have the freezer full of meat. Getting the fresh beef gives us a ton of variety (roast, steak, stew) and our regular grocery trips just amount to produce, butter, sauces, cheese, etc.
You can also often find things like honey in bulk from a local bee farm for cheaper then the store bought stuff.
All this little stuff adds up and I recommend pursuing it. We were getting fresh milk every week from our neighbours while their cows were producing and that stuff was the business. Fresh milk=butter, cream, and cheese.
Oh and also looking into the local berry farms in picking season, or learning how to harvest plants for tea and medicine will go a long way. We have friends that bring us freshly made rose-hip cough syrup, or freshly made apples from a guys orchard.
Basically, get yourself out of the big city and into a small town. Or make the connections and you will not regret it.
its fucked in Canada bro, like 15$ for a pack of bologna fucked
We live in Canada and spend on average around $200 per week on groceries for a family of 4 with a bit extra for pets and preps. I haven't seen $15 bologna, and where I live (small town, rural) our grocery stores prices have dropped back to 3-5 dollars for 3 heads of lettuce and $8 for fresh store made beef salami.
I was pretty concerned about things before, especially last year with all the "supply chain/economy is collapsing tomorrow" stuff, but store shelves are well stocked, prices are affordable and sales come and go as usual. I'm not seeing as much to be concerned about on the ground at the consumer level as I was last year. Idk if that's a good thing or not, or what else I'm missing. I suppose it could be the calm before the storm.
Connect with your local farmers and get a freezer full of fresh beef (4-600$ for about 6 months worth for our family) and eggs ($3 a dozen from a friend). Find some local guys that do their own gardening and canning and sell it on subscription, I think that could be worth it too. I'm looking into that since we arent ready to start gardening beyond a few cucumbers and tomatos this year.
I should add that we often spend less because we have the freezer full of meat. Getting the fresh beef gives us a ton of variety (roast, steak, stew) and our regular grocery trips just amount to produce, butter, sauces, cheese, etc.
You can also often find things like honey in bulk from a local bee farm for cheaper then the store bought stuff.
All this little stuff adds up and I recommend pursuing it. We were getting fresh milk every week from our neighbours while their cows were producing and that stuff was the business. Fresh milk=butter, cream, and cheese.
Oh and also looking into the local berry farms in picking season, or learning how to harvest plants for tea and medicine will go a long way. We have friends that bring us freshly made rose-hip cough syrup, or freshly made apples from a guys orchard.
Basically, get yourself out of the big city and into a small town. Or make the connections and you will not regret it.
Bulk up on butter when on sale (before Christmas). It freezes well.
Learn to make sauces from scratch. It isn't hard. DIY sauce ingredients are easier to prep than 10 jars of every kind you like.