fandomsecrets | [ SECRET POST #2431 ]

[ SECRET POST #2431 ]

⌈ Secret Post #2431 ⌋

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Secrets Left to Post: 01 pages, 015 secrets from Secret Submission Post #347.
Secrets Not Posted: [ 1 2 - broken links ], [ 0 - not!secrets ], [ 0 - not!fandom ], [ 0 - too big ], [ 0 - repeat ], [ 2 - sjw trolls ].
Current Secret Submissions Post: here.
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Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

OK. I do not say this lightly, but the food security wank yesterday weighed heavy on my mind all day today, and reading this http://www.conferenceboard.ca/e-library/abstract.aspx?did=5723 AND this http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/study-finds-being-poor-places-heavy-burden-on-mental-capacity/article14022921/ in the paper this morning did not alleviate just how utterly (again I do not say this lightly) pissed off the whole thread made me.

Food security IS a real, pressing issue, for a lot of people.

So! In the interest of continuing a discussion (not the wank that occurred yesterday) around the topic of food security, I suggest the following:

1. Post a link to a copy of your closest local grocery/supermarket/etc.'s flyer. If there is no link, give us the prices of the staple food items, i.e., meat, potatoes, rice, vegetables, frozen and/or in the can, or local equivalent to what are staples.

2. State if you are <25km or further away from the store in question. State if there are alternatives (i.e., gas bar, takeout place, etc.) closer.

3. Total up how much one of the "suggestions" from yesterday's thread would be in YOUR store (or alternatives), and post how much, i.e., the lentils and canned vegetables, or the pasta and sauce, or the chicken and fresh vegetables and rice, would cost you to make.

4. Finally, state the cost of transportation to this place, either the current cost of gas per litre/gallon or the cost of your bus pass or carpool, etc. If you have no transport, say so.

Buried in yesterday's arguing was one anon plaintively asking for recipes, so let's have those too! Discuss one frugal(ish) recipe you can make from the flyer/prices you have posted.

So you want us to do more wank about how poor each poster is and how none of the other posts understand what it's like because they're not as poor, except this time you want us all to prove it by citing figures?

Eh? No I wanted to talk about food security issues from a non-US viewpoint (I am not American.)

I'm also not spreadsheet!anon either, LOL.

Let it go, spreadsheet anon.

I like the idea but this sounds like a lot of effort for no gain from the part of the people providing the data

Fair enough. I do recommend reading the links I gave, although they are depressing.

Maybe it's be easier to pick 5 items instead of a whole flyer (my flyers are like 15 pages long), then do the rest for your spreadsheet there? Like, idk, bread, milk, oranges etc.

For the rest
I am 3km from a store.
I walk
It's generally cheaper+quicker for me to buy food from local takeout near work so I keep bread/milk/a spread at home and eat everything else out

here's the ad from my local store, less than 5 miles away. Sorry, but I'm too lazy to add up the price of a meal :P

http://weeklyspecials.safeway.com/customer_Frame.jsp?drpStoreID=1732

Also, we don't have many sit down restaurants here and only a handful of fast food places. Technically they're all closer, because the grocery store is next to Walmart at the end of the main street.

I am perhaps a mile from the nearest grocery store. I haven't measured it officially, but it's easy walking distance. There are a couple eateries between here and there (all in the same shopping center): a sandwich place and Korean food. Gas would cost next to nothing to go here. If you can't drive or walk, there are 2 city bus stops between my house and the grocery store... I think bus fare is $1.75.

As for the food prices...

Chicken thighs are $1.69/lb and breasts are $1.99/lb
Ground chuck, $3.49/lb
Fresh corn on the cob is priced at 6 ears for $2
Fresh Grapes, $1.99/lb
Fresh Sweet onion, 99 cents/lb
Fresh Potatoes, 5 lbs for $3.49
Fresh Apples or pears, $1.49/lb
Canned tuna, 4-pack, 5 oz each, for $4.99
Canned fruit, assorted, 3 for $5
Canned vegetables, 11-15 oz, $1
Boxed rice, 6 oz, $1.49 (buy one get one free!)
Sugar, 4lb, $1.99

There are no frozen vegetables on sale, but the store often has the kind you steam in the microwave for $1.

Recipe anon was inspired to make minestrone soup today :)
I am not sure if it's a good idea to reopen this discussion here. You can never really know someone else's reality, and it's obviously a painful subject for a lot of people. If you're interested in prices you could probably look up a consumer index?
Personally I live in Vancouver and I can walk to a dozen different asian markets, so I don't have any flyers or receipts but my groceries are really cheap and I feel extremely lucky.

I'm about 4 mi from a grocery store and gas station but it's in a dangerous part of the neighborhood so I can't really walk there, at least not alone.
There's an expensive one (1 tomato for $1) about 15 minutes away driving and a cheaper one about 25 minutes away. "Ethnic" markets are few and far away or non-existent. Many people grow there own vegetables in their lot or know someone who does. (Semi-agricultural area.)
Takeout is quite expensive, at least $15 dollars for 2 people. Not a lot of choices in takeout either.
Fast food has a dollar menu, but the serving sizes are small, so overall not a great deal.
Living on ramen (44 cents) or spaghetti, rice, or dried beans is the cheapest option.

Ugh, the thread yesterday pissed me off so much! And all these generalizations about America. America is a very large and diverse country, so poor in one part of it is very different from poor in another area.

That thread pissed me off, too, especially the 'there are no food deserts' crap. Arrgh. If food were so cheap and easy to get, we wouldn't have millions of kids eating breakfast and lunch at school, and having to have services that feed kids in the summer and give out sacks of food for the weekends.

I live a mile? from the closest grocery, i could walk it if i had to, but i do have a car. Here's the weekly ad:
http://www.pricecutteronline.com/promotions/

The only fruits on sale are watermelon and cantaloupe - no veggies on sale at all, except for some canned things.

If food were so cheap and easy to get, we wouldn't have millions of kids eating breakfast and lunch at school, and having to have services that feed kids in the summer and give out sacks of food for the weekends.

That really doesn't follow? Their families are just broke. That's an economic problem, not an access problem. I mean, if their families were able to get them takeout every day instead of getting groceries I'm sure they'd do that, but they can't.

It's both. Parents have small food budgets and buying cheap, processed stuff (like dollar-menu stuff) is not only cheaper than grocery food but a lot more plentiful in a lot of places.

But the whole point of your comment was that the families can't feed them at all and the schools have to step in to keep the kids fed?

The whole thing seems like much more an inequality matter than a matter of what form the food is in. It's not like we don't have enough food to feed everyone. But talking about stuff like raising the minimum wage or expanding the SNAP program is too hard I guess.

No, my point was that if food were cheap(er) and easier to get, a lot of families would *not* have their kids getting free breakfasts and lunches, because they hate 'charity' and would rather feed their kids at home. (And a lot of kids hating being on the 'free' program, they feel humiliated.)

But it's pretty obvious they can't, and kids who get fed gas-station or convenience store food are *hungry*, because its not filling or healthy stuff.

The simple fact that the first thing put on the chopping block, *every time*, is SNAP, is a disgrace, a shame, and makes me furious.

I live about a block and a half from a 100 yen Lawson grocery store. That is to say, it sells groceries (1kg bag of flour, 1L of milk, bunch of 5 bananas, bag of salad, 3 cans of tuna, small package of uncooked chicken or pork, loaf of bread, etc., etc.) for the rough equivalent of a dollar per item.

I walk there, and cook for myself, and it costs me less than 500 yen ($5/day) to make meals. You could easily eat garbage from there (massive crates of like 10 ramen packages for a 100 yen) for even cheaper, but I'm not that poor and I work out a lot (with the intention of gaining weight rather than losing it). I just like saving money to spend on other things.

Here's two ultra-cheap meals you can make for yourself from said store:

Omlette:
2 eggs (pack of 10 = 100 yen --> 20 yen)
2 tbps milk (30 mL) (1L = 100 yen --> 3 yen)
2 tbps butter/margarine (250 mL = 100 yen --> 12 yen)
1 chopped up green pepper (4 = 100 yen --> 25 yen)
1/2 corn (2 cups = 100 yen --> 25 yen)
1 clove garlic (3 heads, ~10 cloves a head = 100 yen --> 3 yen)
1 handful of chopped green onion (box = 80 --> 8 yen)
1 pinch salt (1 kg = 100 yen --> 0.01 yen)
1 dash pepper (50 g = 100 yen --> 1 yen)
Splash of cooking oil (1 L = 100 yen --> 1 yen)
Total cost: 98.01 yen, or just under a dollar
Prep time: 5 minutes max (if you really suck at whisking/chopping vegetables)
Cook time: 5 minutes max (longer than this and you've burned it)

You probably already know how to make an omlette, but... whisk together the eggs, milk, and butter/margarine until smooth. Add salt and pepper to taste. Add vegetables, mix, pour into pan over low heat until lightly browned, fold, cook on both sides, prepare and serve.

Cheap ass pasta (makes two servings)
250 g of spaghetti (500g bag = 100 yen --> 50 yen)
150 g on sale meat (150 g = 70 yen)
1 bag pasta sauce (2-3 serving bag = 100 yen)
3 on sale vegetables (e.g. green pepper + carrots + mushrooms) (1 bag each = 70 yen, use 1/3 of each bag = 70 yen total)
2 cloves garlic (6 yen)
1/2 chopped onion (bag of 6 = 100 yen --> 8 yen)
1 pinch salt (1 kg = 100 yen --> 0.01 yen)
1 dash pepper (50 g = 100 yen --> 1 yen)
1 pinch oregano, basil, or other spice (25 g = 100 yen --> 2 yen)
Splash of cooking oil (1 L = 100 yen --> 1 yen)
Total cost: 308 yen total, or 154 yen per serving (plate the other serving, put it in the plastic bag you bought the food in, and put it in the fridge for tomorrow). So, just over $1.50 for an xbox huge plate of pasta sufficient to feed someone trying to bulk. If you're an anon from yesterday who could make a single (300-400 calorie) McDonalds burger last "all day", you could probably get away with three servings out of it or even halving it for four, for $1 and $0.75 respectively.
Total prep time: 10 minutes
Total cook time: 5 minutes

Put water in pot. Salt the water. While water is boiling, chop vegetables. When the water boils, put the pasta in (break it in half). While the pasta is cooking, make the sauce over medium heat. Cook meat in oil. Add vegetables, cook until tender. Add sauce. Add spices to taste. Mix. Drain and plate noodles. Pour sauce on noodles. Save extra portions in the fridge.

Simple shit that makes 15 minutes to make for under a buck and will have more calories per serving (and a great deal more nutrition) than anything off of the Dollar Menu (for reference: http://www.mcdonalds.com/us/en/food/meal_bundles/dollar_menu.html). Of course, if you're actually only eating a 390 calorie burger a day, you'll be dead soon, as an adult requires 600-1000 calories a day to survive. So, if you can afford to buy two things off the dollar menu to survive, you can afford (at least in Japan) two much healthier meals made yourself.

Not that I don't know people here living off nothing but ramen and soda.

Posting recipes might be fun, 1 - 4 sounds like work.

ngl, I'm really concerned that the poster from yesterday who insists that there's no such thing as food deserts and that poor people should just buy cheap lentils and vegetables that will miraculously be under $2 and right next door and fix them in their plentiful free time instead of going to McDonalds will show up.

Within approx. 5 mile radius are several grocery stores, because I'm one of the lucky ones re: food availability. The nearest is moderately expensive and will require crossing a very busy (55mph speed limit) highway that has no sidewalks or pedestrian crossings, which is very typical of most roads around here. The second nearest is an expensive health food/organic grocery. There are three ethnic markets, only one of which carries a limited selection of produce that isn't in the best shape because their turnover is not high. Best bet is an Aldi, 3 miles away, which will require crossing TWO very busy roads. For food alternatives, there are several fast food places that are closer, a nice and inexpensive Indian take-away place, and maybe half a dozen or so cheap to moderately priced restaurants.

I haven't priced lentils recently, but a 2 lb. bag of pinto beans at Aldi costs $1.69, IIRC. If we're going by the comments yesterday re: $2, I'd have .31 left over for vegetables. That MIGHT buy me a small onion or a head of garlic, but of course, for that you'd have to walk another mile or so and cross another busy road to a larger grocery store because Aldi's produce is almost entirely pre-packaged and you can't buy one onion. I could come home and boil up the lentils and my sad onion, which will probably only take an hour or so.

Much like yesterday's commenter, I've got a pantry full of spices that would make lentils a lot tastier, but of course, that's because I have 1) cooking experience that tells me what to buy and how to use it and 2) money and access to spices. If I didn't have those things, I'd be stuck eating my lentils and onion with salt and pepper and feeling vastly superior to everyone who decided to make a much shorter walk to McDonalds and simply buy a burger and fries instead.

...

Just kidding. I'd be contemplating merciful death because boiled lentils with hardly anything to flavor it tastes like fucking cardboard, which is exactly why I don't tell people who lack money and cooking skills to "just cook lentils and some vegetables, it's way better than fast food!"

I'm down with the cheap recipes idea, because it's probably the most useful thing that might come out of this thread. Prices are a rough estimate, because it's off the top of my head and it's hard to estimate how much a teaspoon of something costs when you don't buy it by the teaspoon.

DIY Franks and Beans

1 package hot dogs, sliced (I get the cheapest kind, which are roughly $1.25)
1 lb. white beans (navy beans, northern beans, etc. about $1.50)
vegetable oil (.25)
1 large yellow onion, chopped (.25)
2-3 cloves garlic, minced (.10)
1 14 oz. can diced tomatoes (.75)
1 8 oz. can tomato paste (.33)
2 Tbsp. worcestershire sauce (.25)
water
salt and pepper
optional additional spices: dried oregano, thyme, sage up to 1 1/2 tsp.

First, soak the beans overnight. The next day, follow instructions on the bag for boiling them, it usually takes an hour and a half or so. Drain beans and set them aside.

In a large pot, heat the oil and saute the hot dog slices. Add in the onion and garlic, stir for a couple minutes or so. Dump in the beans, diced tomatoes and tomato sauce. Add worcestershire and enough water so that the beans are almost but not entirely immersed. You don't want the beans too watery. Add spices if you're using them and simmer until the beans have reduced somewhat and everything has thickened a little, maybe half an hour. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Very filling and high in protein and it makes a LOT.

Funny thing is, I live only about a mile from the nearest grocery store, which has very reasonable prices on produce (not cheap for meat, but I'm a vegetarian anyway) and most non-exotic groceries... but there's an airport directly in between us, so I have to go about three miles around it to get there. Buses only started to run in the neighborhood where I live, which doesn't affect me because I have a car, but yeah. Fun times. Meanwhile there are about a dozen take-out or fast food or pizza delivery places on the way TO the grocery store, and a few blocks in every direction, and a convenience store full of extremely cheap (under $1) junk food a block away at the intersection that everyone in the neighborhood has to go through to get anywhere other than residential areas of town, right across from the bus stop.

As for frugality, when I was unemployed, I lived for a couple of years on $7000 I had saved from my last job, in part because about once a week for a year I bought a box of crackers and jar of peanut butter, and ate basically nothing else unless I went over to my parents' house for dinner. I actually like peanut butter, though, so I didn't mind this...

because about once a week for a year I bought a box of crackers and jar of peanut butter

I totally did that for lunch for a year. Saltines and peanut butter. Not exactly very healthy, but filling! (I then tended to eat pasta ("real" if I had more money, ramen if I did not) for dinner. Fun times.)

http://www.thriftyfoods.com/eflyer/interactive-flyer-20130828-insert-page1.html

I am 2-3 blocks away. It's not the cheapest store, but it's the closest and there are like 2-3 others if I wanna go another block away from my house.

Yeah I'm not going through that thread.

I walk here. I HAVE a bus pass, but it's not really convenient to take a bus even with a bunch of groceries. Frugal recipes usually involve stir fry or pasta with random ingredients, but I'm too lazy to price it out.

I live 17.2 miles from the nearest grocery store. I'm in a desert, so we don't have much produce and it costs a lot of money. It's also never the right color so I haven't looked at the actual prices in a while. I just know that when I moved here a year ago, fruits cost almost 3 times as much as they did in Connecticut and veggies were twice as much.

Gas is $4.19 a gallon and I use about 5 gallons of gas to go to the store in the summer because I have to use the AC. I also have to buy two bags of ice for $3 each for the cooler I keep in my car because otherwise my cold foods would all spoil on the way home. I can't buy frozen foods in the summer.

In between my house and the supermarket are dozens of restaurants ranging from McDonald's to really fancy places where meals cost $75 and up per person. There are also many more places that only deliver.

There are countless gas stations and that's where I have to go to buy milk. It costs $3.49 a gallon and the gas stations only sell whole milk and 2% (I want skim).

We mostly eat chicken and rice. I buy a 20lb sack of rice every other month or so for $22 or $23 (I can't remember which but I hand them $25 and get at least one bill back with the change).

There is also a Walmart between my house and the supermarket but they run out of things all the time. It's 12 miles from my house and it's better to just drive to the supermarket instead. There is another (larger) city about 45 minutes from my house and sometimes we go there because they have about 10 different Walmarts with lots of things in stock, at least another 4 Walmarts that are just grocery stores but they are always out of the basics, and there are 5 or 6 grocery stores in the city. Between the biggest Walmart and all of the grocery stores that I know of, I can find almost everything that the grocery store 3 miles form my house in Connecticut had. So I live in an actual desert and a food desert, whch I think is the case for most desert cities and towns in the SW US from what I can learn.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[ SECRET POST #2431 ]

Post your grocery flyers, F!S! (Or equivalent.)

Re: Post your grocery flyers, F!S! (Or equivalent.)

Re: Post your grocery flyers, F!S! (Or equivalent.)

Re: Post your grocery flyers, F!S! (Or equivalent.)

Re: Post your grocery flyers, F!S! (Or equivalent.)

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I'll Bite

Re: Post your grocery flyers, F!S! (Or equivalent.)

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Re: Post your grocery flyers, F!S! (Or equivalent.)

Re: Post your grocery flyers, F!S! (Or equivalent.)