Stocktaking

I don’t know about anybody else but filling our bellies and cupboards on a budget is tough going sometimes. My heart wishes we could buy Irish as much as possible, source food locally and support organic producers. My purse on the other hand & consequently my head, reminds me that we have a serious budget to stick to. Today is the last day of the month which means our bank account will take a hammering and the next credit to our account is due on Tuesday (Child Benefit). I have the princely sum of €9.50 in my purse which is clearly not going to stretch very far. I last did a grocery shop over a week ago but I did get some meat from the butcher on Saturday (today is Wednesday). The question might be can I manage without going shopping until then but truthfully it is do I need to go shopping at all?

So here’s the challenge. This morning I’m going to do a stocktake of my cupboards. I’m attaching a template to this blogpost for anybody who would like to do the challenge with me. Then this afternoon I’ll take my cupboard ingredients and plan my meals for the next week in as much as I can from just what I have in the house. I’ll post a meal planning template for you then too.

Even if your purse doesn’t feel empty this will save you money and you should have extra cash for a night out, new pair of shoes and if you do this once a month then you could even have a holiday fund. I have a budget of approximately €100 per week for groceries and this includes nappies. If you spend less than that, or more, consider how much you would save if you managed to do this store cupboard clearout once a month.  It’s a large amount of money isn’t it?

Happy counting & let me know how you get on.

Wholesome Ireland Stocktake