The Cost of Food

Yesterday I stumbled across an interesting link from the US Gov. It is a table of estimated Cost of Food at Home. The table estimates weekly food expenditures for different sized families with varied spending habits that dates back to 1994. I clicked on February of 2007 and apparently, a family of four using the Liberal Food Plan will spend $203.20 per week. Compare the Liberal Food Plan to the Thrifty Food Plan in which a family of 4 will spend $106.70 per week.

Last week I maintained my grocery receipts and here are the results: Minus the $49.93 spent on wine & beer and the $11.98 spent on fresh cut flowers, my total food cost was $194.05.

I'd say the people that developed this table are pretty spot on if their concept of liberal includes purchasing fresh organic produce, baguette and French cheese. That is just the thing, the definitions of 'thrifty' and 'liberal' are vague but based on the food pyramid. A pamphlet on the same website states that, "Because most people have a diet that needs improvement, this revision of the market baskets is an important means of helping households eat more healthfully."     Interesting statement.

How does your weekly spend on food compare to the table? Do you feel as though your family eats healthy?