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What does our food budget look like while trying to eat a real food diet on a budget? Today, I welcome you to take a peak into our food budget. We keep to the basics in our eating habits, nothing fancy. I have come to realize that although real foods can cost more up front, the value is worth every penny. We feel better, we are satisfied longer, and we rarely need the doctor. Truth be told…I have realized you can always afford what you prioritize. When we first started out pursuing a more whole foods diet, Aaron and I sat down to evaluate our overall budget. We concluded that if we wanted to spend more on food, other things would have to go. One of the main reasons I chose to cloth diaper, for example, was so that we could eliminate that monthly expense and use the money for food. Other expenses that we chose to eliminate: we own no television, no magazine subscriptions, own one vehicle, eat out less, etc. I have found that if you have the vision and passion to eat naturally, you can make it work!
Our food budget is $400 per month for four of us. Yes, Titus eats his share! 
Whole foods definitely seem to be more expensive here in the Portland area of Oregon, probably because there is more demand for it. This includes all our food and household products (bath, cleaning, and general household items). Where does it get spent? I have listed out the stores I buy my food from below. These are typically the best sources that we have access to that I have found the best price. As you can see below, I keep pretty much the same list monthly and keep it organized in the Shopper application on my I-phone (which has been very helpful, by the way!). All these ingredients are also based upon my monthly menu plans. This works for our family, but there is always room for flexibility as to the season of life.
Trader Joe’s - I make a monthly grocery trip to TJ’s to pick up various staples. I found they have some of the best prices on good, organic, and preservative free items.
Here is what I buy monthly or as needed, spending around $125 per month:
All Beef, Nitrate Free Hot Dogs – 1 pack
Nitrate Free Ham (lunchmeat) – 1 lb
Chicken Italian Sausage (2 lbs)
Organic Spinach (for smoothies) – 3 bags
Bananas (about 20 – freeze for smoothies)
Avacados (2 packs – mainly for Titus)
Raw Parmesan Cheese (in the bulk form)
Canned Wild Salmon
Organic Ketchup
Organic Mustard
Mayonnaise (sometimes I buy, sometimes I make my own)
Kerrygold Butter (2 pounds)
Olives (2 cans)
Organic Sour Cream (1 container)
Salsa
Peanut Butter (2 jars)
Brown Rice Pasta (1 pack of spaghetti, 1 pack penne, as needed)
Chicken Breasts (1 bag)
Frozen Organic Peas (1 pack)
Frozen Organic Corn (1 pack)
Frozen Wild Salmon (2 lb = 2 packs)
Olive Oil (32 oz container -every two months)
Pure Maple Syrup (every two months)
Organic Quinoa
Organic Raisins
Toothpaste (every two months)
Shampoo (every two months)
Soap Bars
Toilet Paper
Coffee & Beer (for the hubby)
Occasionally, we will get a few treats…such as Jo-Jo’s, (yes, those yummy oreo alternatives), raw bleu cheese, feta cheese, etc.
Azure Standard (whole foods co-op) – $50 per month – most of these items are purchased on an as needed basis
Raw Cheddar (5 lbs) – every two months – grate and freeze it
Mozzarella (5 lbs – every 2 months – also grate and freeze)
Organic Whole Grains, Legumes: Wheat, Kamut, Spelt, Oats, Millet, Lentils, Brown Rice, Black Beans (purchased in 5 lb quantities, oats and wheat in 25 lb bags)
Spices
Organic Coconut Milk
Chia Seeds
Cocoa Powder
Nuts
Rapadura/Sucanat
Leavenings -baking soda, baking powder, arrowroot powder, sea salt
Goat’s Milk Powder (for baby)
Produce on occasion – Organic Apples, Pears (20 lb box)
Milk & Eggs – local source = $75.00 per month
2 dozen eggs weekly – $3.75 per dozen
1 1/2 gallons of milk weekly- $7.50 per gallon – from which I make kefir, yogurt, and some butter, and occasional ice cream
Vegetables/Fruit- local farms- $15-20 per week – $80 per month
I stick with the frugal vegetables and fruits and whats in season for better prices. I rarely if ever buy cherries, peppers, pineapple, etc. We eat a lot of greens, apples, pears, carrots, broccoli, onions, garlic, squash, potatoes, etc. We typically serve raw veggies and fruit with lunch and dinner includes a fresh salad (even if its just greens sometimes), and usually a steamed or baked veggie.
Beef – annual local purchase of 1/4 cow – $375 - $31.25 per month
We typically eat beef twice a week, chicken once, fish once, vegetarian once and pizza and leftovers on the weekends.
Chickens – annual local purchase of 12 chickens (one per month) – $180 – $15 per month – I cook up one chicken per month from which we make chicken stock.
Produce stocked up on in the summer for freezer- Strawberries, peaches, raspberries, blueberries, tomatoes (canned all my own tomatoes for sauce), pickling cucumbers for pickles, berries for homemade jam – I usually set aside $200 for such purchases, but I don’t really include this in our food budget. I just set money aside early in the summer from other earnings.
Other items from different sources:
Organic EV Coconut oil – order from Mountain Rose Herbs (we consume about 1 gallon every 2 months) – buy in quantity and split with friends
Cod liver oil – purchase through Vitacost
Pepperoni – I buy Applegate Farms nitrate free pepperoni from Fred Meyer’s
Bread – I currently buy sprouted bread, hot dog buns, hamburger buns from Dave’s Killer Bread Outlet – I can buy one loaf of sprouted 100% organic bread for $2.10 a loaf in bulk quantities (it’s been one of those seasons when making it from scratch has been a real challenge!)
Raw Honey -from a local farm – Honey House Farms (1/2 gallon every two months)
Vinegar, club soda, hydrogen peroxide, oxygen bleach and a few other cleaning supplies – infrequent purchases at wal-mart or Fred Meyers
Soap nuts – for laundry from NaturOli
What happens when we really need to cut corners? As my husband is self-employed, income is never quite consistent, so there have been times when we really had to cut back. In order to make it work, we cut the following out of our grocery list, and can usually get by with $300 per month:
limit to 1 gallon of milk
1 dozen eggs
no salmon
no lunchmeat
no snacks
make my own ketchup
make my own bread
What products do I make myself?
chicken broth
breakfasts (smoothies, pancakes, oatmeal – meaning that we don’t use packaged products, just use our own homemade recipes)
muffins and other breakfast pastries
tortillas
biscuits
salad dressings
ice cream and other desserts
protein bars for snacks
canned tomato sauce – homemade chili, spaghetti sauce, etc
jams
I may have overlooked something…
What products do we avoid? As you can see, we do really strive to keep to the basics with the ocassional splurge on a special dessert or snack. I try to avoid mixes, cereal, soda, packaged snacks…
You can make it work! You just sometimes have to cut out some of those convenience foods. Alas!
Other Real Food Budgets:
Stephanie @ Keeper of the Home – How My Grocery Budget Works
Laura @ Heavenly Homemakers – Breaking Down the Budget
What does your food budget look like? Do you have any tips to share on how to make it work on a budget?
One thing that helps my food budget is making my own snacks. I have been able to find every recipe I need on http://www.allrecipes.com including pretzels, graham crackers and wheat crackers!
Glad i found your site!!
Hi Lindsay! I am a long-time (quiet) reader. I wanted to share that we were also paying close to $8/gallon for our raw milk. We kept searching and searching and recently found a superb, small dairy with wonderfully healthy, grass-fed heifers that sale their milk for $3.75/gallon. We feel so blessed! We now buy 12 gallons each month to make our own butter, kefir, cream fraishe, cream cheese and whey.
Your blog has been an incredible blessing to my family and I enjoy checking in weekly. I especially appreciate this post and look forward to watching you grow in the future. Keep searching for a small, local dairy and you may get as lucky as we have. (BTW, we live in Alabama, so unfortunately I can’t recommend our dairy to you, lol).
God Bless!
Erin,
We are also in Alabama. I would love to know where you get your milk.
Thanks!
Wendy
Hey Lindsay,
Thanks so much for posting your budget and resources. It is so helpful in trying to find quality ingredients in the desert- which is where I live the Mojave desert. I have to purchase most of my items online because it is hard to find a local source. We don’t even have a Trader Joes!
have you looked at the Tropical Traditions Coconut Oil?
I’m trying to figure out the best for our money. Plus the best for our body. Let me know what you think
I always buy from them, if you get a group to do a buyers club split, great. If not you can watch the sales and buy accordingly.
some of these things I have found at Costco, I also love TJ’s. I haven’t compared the prices of organic spinach or butter. Have you? Are you a fan of Costco?
What do you use the goat milk powder for?
I use it for a natural milk supplement with my infants when my milk supply isn’t all the sufficient. Read more about it here.
Hello! I was wondering where you get your raw milk for $7.50 a gallon! A great price! I also live in the PDX area (washington) and cannot seem to find raw milk at that price! Thanks!
lindsay, your blog is a direct answer to my prayers. thanks for all that you’re doing! quick question, does your family drink raw milk? i’m considering making the switch and i was wondering your thoughts…?
Yes, we absolutely love raw milk! It is so rich and fresh and wonderfully nutritious. Highly recommend it! For more info, please check out: realmilk.com.
thanks, that’s a great website!
This is great for ideas AND to make me feel a little better.
I had been feeling bad about the cost of our groceries/household items – $550/month for a family of 7 (one exclusively bfeeding). But unfortunately, right now none of it is organic. With no TJ’s or Whole Foods around, organic is really hard to come by.
I see you get coconut milk. What do you use coconut milk for what are the benifts to using coconut milk?. I bought some and use it in my bread recipy and wow what a difference. It was realy good bread. For the first time I see that I can afford a good healty whole food diet. I’m gald you broke your food buget for us. I was a little overwelmed about starting to eat a whole food diet. I just put in my first order from Azure Standard. Ya there is a drop off only 30 min from me.
Wow, I wish our food budget looked like that! We eat very similarly to what you have described, but we spend about $200 a WEEK on groceries! We are a family of 6 with 4 teenagers who eat us out of house and home, so that might have something to do with it! I am going to be looking into buying more stuff in bulk. Maybe that will help us out somewhat. Any suggestions for a co-op on the East coast?
Every single time I read a post like this (and they ARE very helpful), I think, wow. My family must really eat a lot. There are 4 of us, two adults and a toddler and a baby. Your “monthly” list — we could go through that much in 2 weeks or less! We eat about 3 doz eggs/week (sometimes more), 1 gal milk, 5 lbs. or so beef, 9 – 12 lbs. chicken…it’s ridiculous. I have to make 1.5 – 2 lbs. of meat per meal (dinner) even if I’m making a big salad, grains, etc. I sprout all my own grain and bake my own bread. We buy in bulk, we belong to a CSA. And I still spend…well…I guess $400 – $500 on food each month. So not that different, and we don’t eat that differently from you. But I still think my family just eats a lot!
This post is exactly what I have been looking for – thank you so much! My one question is with Azure – how do you get around the shipping cost – I wanted to order my grains/flour/beans and the shipping was $42.00!!! Is there something I am missing? Thank you!
Azure Standard offers drop spots all over the NW and Midwest. They drop for free within their routes. Check out their website to see if you live in an area where they have a drop spot. Otherwise, you have to pay for UPS shipping and that can definitely add up.
Ok, there is just no way one pound of lunch meat would last us a month. What other options do you feed for lunches. We do sandwiches so much and maybe if I had other options I could cut back on the very expensive cost of weekly lunch meat??? Oh do help please!
We honestly don’t eat many meat sandwiches on a regular basis because yes, it does cost a lot. I mainly make meat sandwiches for my husband to take to work. At home, the kids and I eat PB & J, tomato soup & grilled cheese, burritos, leftovers, salmon melts (find recipe in recipe section), etc. Leftovers is what we mainly eat for lunch though.
Where do you get your Chickens & Beef? I’m down in Salem and lost my source so I’m looking for a new one and would be happy to drive!
Check out my Local Resources page.
This is incredibly enlightening. THANK YOU!
Thank you, thank you for this post! We are a family of five, and I have just, in the past few months, cut my budget to $85/week (food and toiletries) from $170/week…yes, in half! But, we were eating stuff we’d never eaten before..boxed potatoes, velveeta..whatever I could find on sale to pair with coupons. I couldn’t stand it anymore, and really prayed and asked God to show me how to do our menus healthy on our new budget, have read alot of blogs, but this is the first that shows me HOW!
I have printed out this post and plan to go over it and make notes for myself! 
I’m so very excited! Praise God! thanks, again!
I was just looking over your food budget as we start CSA payments the end of this month. I like the way you have it all sorted…very helpful, THANKS. Do you have a specific source for your sesame seeds/tahini ingredients???
I purchase all my seeds, nuts, etc from Azure Standard. You can also find tahini at Fred Meyer Nutrition.
After following your example and tweaking it for me, I have cut my budget in half for the last two months!!!
I just found your blog today and I’m so glad I did! This posting is especially helpful since my husband is finally on board with changing our diet. Yay! I’m in central Oregon so I’m pretty sure I can find most of this stuff. I checked out Azure Standard and I’ll definitely be ordering from them. (I thought it sounded familiar and sure enough my dad was telling me about them a month ago. Apparently he went up to their farm and really liked it. Small world.) Thanks for the good information!
Hope this isn’t a redundant question – I couldn’t find a comment with the answer. I am looking for a good local source to buy eggs from, hopefully that would support a local farm, and I noticed on your natural resource links that you did have one source but when I checked into them they are 4.50 a dozen. I noticed you pay less in your budget and was wondering if you could share with me where you get your eggs. We are local here in Vancouver as well.
Thanks so much!
Willow
Please email me personally for this information because I cannot post it online. Thanks!
Dear Lindsay,
So…does this include ALL the random household stuff…like:
baby feeding spoons
razor blades
occasional purchase of washcloths, towels, etc
I mean, do you have any other budget allocated for household stuff, or is it all im with your food budget?
Right now we have a food budget and a separate household budget but I was thinking of combining and I was surprised that if you do have all of the household stuff in that budget, you could keep it down to $400!
It covers all the regular household purchases (razers, bath & body products, cleaning supplies, toilet paper, etc). Purchases that need to be made on a consistent repeated basis. But it does not cover the infrequent larger purchases related to the household. We do have a small monthly budget for general household repairs, and that would cover towels, water filters, furnace filters, bibs, baby spoons, light bulbs, sheets, etc. Does that make sense?
What do you use as a body soap in the shower now if not Bronners?
I have been changing so frequently on this one, I don’t rightly know.
Right now we are using the NaturOli Soap nuts soap bars or any soap bars from Trader Joe’s.
I haven’t read through all of the comments yet, so I’m not sure if you touched on this or not, but I noticed you had toothpaste on the list. We are currently using Toothsoap (except for my husband), but I was going to try your homemade recipe once we ran out. Are you not making it anymore for your family? And if not, did you find a satisfactory store-bought substitution? Just curious. I figured that would save some money, if I started making homemade toothsoap. Thanks!
I usually make homemade toothpaste as a back-up. I found it is not a significant money saver to make it yourself, especially now that I don’t buy Dr Bronners regularly. TJ’s is just $2 for a tube of all natural, flouride free toothpaste…so that works for us!
I wish we had a TJ’s nearby! I miss it terribly. So I was wondering, if you’re not using Dr. Bronner’s soap now, what are you using for your body products? I was thinking I’d try the Soap Nuts for that use as well as cleaning, once I buy some. Have you tried that? I am also looking to make your shampoo recipe once we run out of other stuff. Thanks!
I found the soap nuts is too liquidy for us to use in body products, but if you don’t mind that, it works great. We just prefer a little thickness and more suds (probably more of my hubby’s preference). I only used Dr. Bronners for shampoo and toothpaste in the past, and now I buy those products most of the time or use a vegetable glygerin in replacement of the Dr Bronners.
Wow! We’re trying to cut down to $400, but it’s more around $500. The junk food addict in the house doesn’t help. LOL
What an informative post! I was wondering, so do you use just one chicken for all four chicken meals?
I do buy a pack of chicken breasts at TJ’s once a month.
You mentioned that you buy 3 bags of spinach per month. Do you buy it frozen or fresh? If you buy it fresh…how do you keep it for a whole month? Mine never lasts more than a week in the fridge.
I buy it fresh. No, it doesn’t last us for the whole month. I buy various other greens from local sources, but it would be easy enough to freeze extras or buy more and freeze for smoothies as it doesn’t affect the texture.