Cost of living crisis

[Greg]

Struggled to find chicken breast for much less than £10 a kilo today. Didn’t bother buying what I did find. Not worth it.

Feels like everything has gone up a lot in 2023 and we’re only just in February. Canada doesn’t produce much at this time of year which doesn’t help of course, but it’s bloody ridiculous.

God knows how everyone else is coping.

 

[MaC]

It's the things I didn't expect to go up that have doubled in price.
Sugar is now a pound a kg. It was two for a pound not long ago.
Butter up to £4.75, it was £3 this time last year. Bread flour has doubled in price.
Stuff for Son2's packed lunch, from muesli bars to crisps, now £1.50 for six packs. They were a pound just before Christmas. Cuppa soups are up to £1.50, they were 79p. Rolls were 18p and are now 35p each. Wee boxes of raisins were 12 for a pound, and are now £1.75.
He says that the shop in the office building has increased their prices too. Sandwiches now £4.50 from £2.99, coffee up to three quid.
Marmite's now a pound a jar dearer than this time last year. Tube of tomato puree was 29p at the start of lockdown. It's 99p now.
Fruit and veg doesn't seem to be up, maybe a few pence here and there, but on the whole, I'm not finding it a shock unlike the dairy and flour.

I don't buy much meat, mostly Himself eats vegetarian like the rest of us, but my friend regularly shares what he hunts, so we have venison, pheasant and duck in the freezer. I did notice that the price of chicken was going up though, but mostly because I was keeping an eye on the egg prices. Bird flu is hitting hard, and they're culling entire flocks here.

I acknowledge that we are very fortunate and my household can afford the increases, but it's really starting to hit home with the stuff that I know parents with young children buy, and how much that has all gone up.
I check the lists of foods needed before I shop, and I deliberately buy the things I know that the youngsters eat or drink and put them into the trolleys for the food banks.
We're older, I don't have children around in the family, but I mind how carefully I budgeted when mine were little, and we didn't have inflation like this.
I feel sorry for young mums and dads who are facing this.
It's bad enough for people who budget really carefully to manage mortgages, etc., but parents are responsible for more than themselves too.

Tell you what's up too; underwear. Marks and Spencers men's underwear has really jumped in price and so have bras. The same bra, style, etc., is now fifteen quid more expensive than last year. Himself's briefs are ten quid a pack more expensive.
How can they justify that ?
Bet you dividends are good this year though.

 

[RickDastardly]

I've taken to scouring the reduced isle in the supermarket to get some 'treats'. Well, I always checked it out but now it's the first place I go. Otherwise it's mostly beans on toast, pasta with a tin of tomatoes and a (half the size but 'look, it's still the same price it was two days ago') tin of chemical-loaded tuna.

What I noticed is a that lot of the basics they are saying are 'price locked' or whatever, but all the extra things we have to buy as well have increased even more to cover the lower profit on the 'price locked' stuff that gets advertised to get you in the store. That's my theory.

And yet most of the big companies are recording record profits. Something's wrong, somewhere. Was it Shell's that's at an all time high in its history now?

'They' don't need to justify anything unfortunately, no more than those in government need to worry about being held accountable. Greed is at an all time high.

 

[Saint-Just]

Struggled to find chicken breast for much less than £10 a kilo today. Didn’t bother buying what I did find. Not worth it.

Feels like everything has gone up a lot in 2023 and we’re only just in February. Canada doesn’t produce much at this time of year which doesn’t help of course, but it’s bloody ridiculous.

God knows how everyone else is coping.

Get some chicken tights instead.
They are tastier and cheaper.
BTW, I wholeheartedly agree with the gist of the post, I just don't buy chicken breast (and yes, it's the first bit I eat when we cook a whole chicken, but that's because we'll eat the leftovers cold if Mrs SJ doesn't make a chicken pie and a cold chicken breast is a bit dry).

 

[Juttle]

Are chicken tights something to keep the hens warm in the winter or do they go with other (cough) bits of ‘special’ clothing?

 

[BorderReiver]

It's the things I didn't expect to go up that have doubled in price.
Sugar is now a pound a kg. It was two for a pound not long ago.
Butter up to £4.75, it was £3 this time last year. Bread flour has doubled in price.
Stuff for Son2's packed lunch, from muesli bars to crisps, now £1.50 for six packs. They were a pound just before Christmas. Cuppa soups are up to £1.50, they were 79p. Rolls were 18p and are now 35p each. Wee boxes of raisins were 12 for a pound, and are now £1.75.
He says that the shop in the office building has increased their prices too. Sandwiches now £4.50 from £2.99, coffee up to three quid.
Marmite's now a pound a jar dearer than this time last year. Tube of tomato puree was 29p at the start of lockdown. It's 99p now.
Fruit and veg doesn't seem to be up, maybe a few pence here and there, but on the whole, I'm not finding it a shock unlike the dairy and flour.

I don't buy much meat, mostly Himself eats vegetarian like the rest of us, but my friend regularly shares what he hunts, so we have venison, pheasant and duck in the freezer. I did notice that the price of chicken was going up though, but mostly because I was keeping an eye on the egg prices. Bird flu is hitting hard, and they're culling entire flocks here.

I acknowledge that we are very fortunate and my household can afford the increases, but it's really starting to hit home with the stuff that I know parents with young children buy, and how much that has all gone up.
I check the lists of foods needed before I shop, and I deliberately buy the things I know that the youngsters eat or drink and put them into the trolleys for the food banks.
We're older, I don't have children around in the family, but I mind how carefully I budgeted when mine were little, and we didn't have inflation like this.
I feel sorry for young mums and dads who are facing this.
It's bad enough for people who budget really carefully to manage mortgages, etc., but parents are responsible for more than themselves too.

Tell you what's up too; underwear. Marks and Spencers men's underwear has really jumped in price and so have bras. The same bra, style, etc., is now fifteen quid more expensive than last year. Himself's briefs are ten quid a pack more expensive.
How can they justify that ?
Bet you dividends are good this year though.

Inflation hides a lot of piggy back profiteering.

 

[Jaggededge]

I fancied a fishfinger sandwich last weekend. Picked up a box of 30 birds eye ones. £7.65. I couldn't put them down fast enough.

 

[Woody Girl]

Try £3.85 for a loaf of gluten free bread half the size of a normal one.
£4.50 for 6 pitta breads, or £3.95 for 6 wraps.!
I managed to find a bag of reduced price stir fry veg for 50p and some fresh rice noodles for the same price.
Made Mary's satay recipe for the sauce. Two meals and Full tummy for very little spondoolies.
Last month I got a nice reduced price steak for £2.30 and made a stew in the slow cooker, it lasted me two days.
Don't normaly eat meat, but I'm more of a flexitairian nowadays.

 

[Greg]

And yet most of the big companies are recording record profits. Something's wrong, somewhere. Was it Shell's that's at an all time high in its history now?

'They' don't need to justify anything unfortunately, no more than those in government need to worry about being held accountable. Greed is at an all time high.

The vast majority of big food stores and chain pharmacies in Canada are operated by 3 companies, locally to me it is really 2 companies (Metro and Loblaw's). The lack of competition means they can more or less do what they like. Loblaw's is getting a lot of bad press at the moment because their marketing team are not handling people's negative reaction to their business model very well.

Shoplifting from these stores has exploded of course.

It's not good.

 

[Greg]

Get some chicken tights instead.
They are tastier and cheaper.
BTW, I wholeheartedly agree with the gist of the post, I just don't buy chicken breast (and yes, it's the first bit I eat when we cook a whole chicken, but that's because we'll eat the leftovers cold if Mrs SJ doesn't make a chicken pie and a cold chicken breast is a bit dry).

Not much difference here. I do buy thighs as well.

 

[Woody Girl]

I'm glad I put by a load of tinned goods over the past few years. Brexit got me thinking hard and then the covid thing hit. Knowing I'd not be wanting to shop much, I kept going, a few bits each week, made new raised beds and grew veg, which I've used to eke out my shopping basket, I'll just keep going, only using the store for stuff I can't grow or make myself.
It will get worse, supermarkets are definatly profiteering, as are fuel suppliers. Yes, stuff is going up in price, and some things are scarcer, therefore more expensive. It will all come to a head this year or next. Then I expect a 1930s style crash.
Hope I'm wrong, but who can tell.? Prepare for the worst, and hope for the best. Its all you can do.

 

[Greg]

It's a bit of a catch 22 though because the the more you store the more exposed you are when you run out. I have been supplementing my income with a bit of buying and selling which tackles the problem from the opposite angle. I may have to just commit to doing more of that.

Another one - I've been renting U Hauls occasionally since I moved here and the the per kiometer surcharge has gone up massively. Used to be 69c/km on a 10' van, now $1.09.

 

[Woody Girl]

It's a bit of a catch 22 though because the the more you store the more exposed you are when you run out. .

I'm still eating at 2020/21 prices though . I'm replenishing a few cans a week, and rotating, so in a few years time, I will be eating at present day prices, instead of 2024/6 prices.
I mark dates with a sharpie for ease and store them with oldest dates at the front. Cans will last beyond the marked dates anyway if stored correctly.
Must admit to having a blow out tonight. Reduced price Gu pots (double caramel) and chip shop chips.
A whole weeks worth of meals in one.
This week's veg cost £2.50.. potatoes, carrots, onions, and half a red cabbage.
That will make coleslaw for wraps and a stew, with reduced price lamb chops, £1.85, and vegetarian sausages £2.50.
£6.85 for 5 days main meals, and lunches. Porridge for breakfast, sorted!

 

[BorderReiver]

My electricity bill for the month is £625.25. April, when the subsidy goes, is going to hurt.

 

[MaC]

My electricity bill for the month is £625.25. April, when the subsidy goes, is going to hurt.

Crikey, that's a scary number for a month.
We're half that for both gas and electricity. We've still a year to go on the tied in tariff for electricity. Heaven knows what our bill's going to be like then.

 

[ElThomsono]

My electricity bill for the month is £625.25. April, when the subsidy goes, is going to hurt.

Yikes! :oops:

 

[Woody Girl]

My electricity bill for the month is £625.25. April, when the subsidy goes, is going to hurt.

You are going to have to give up the grow lights in the loft mate 😉
Seriously though, that's scary high.
I've no idea what my next quarterly bill will be, I'm worried, but I need warmth, and I'm just trying to save energy where I can. My little camp stove for cups of tea, or porridge. Slow cooker for initial stew cooking, then the gas stove for subsequent portion heating. I don't think I've used my oven but twice in the past six months.

 

[Stew]

Why aren’t you using the hay box?

 

[BorderReiver]

Crikey, that's a scary number for a month.
We're half that for both gas and electricity. We've still a year to go on the tied in tariff for electricity. Heaven knows what our bill's going to be like then.

Totally electric, no mains gas in the village and we keep the burner and logs for backup. We hope the panels will compensate a bit during the summer months.

 

[ElThomsono]

£770 worth of logs has seen this draughty Edwardian house through the entire winter, would you not be better off lighting the burner? We've got mains gas and we're still better off burning logs.

Financially, that is. I've got the blood of a few asthmatics on my hands but the reduced CO2 has bought the planet another day or two.

 

[BorderReiver]

£770 worth of logs has seen this draughty Edwardian house through the entire winter, would you not be better off lighting the burner? We've got mains gas and we're still better off burning logs.

Financially, that is. I've got the blood of a few asthmatics on my hands but the reduced CO2 has bought the planet another day or two.

We have used it in the past when our storage heaters decided not to come on, but it wasn't adequate for whole house (70's chalet bungalow) heating. If the price gets too much we'll resort to it and our regrettably no longer needed artic and winter holiday clothing.

 

[MaC]

Run a dehumidifier.
Seriously, it costs pennies to run and it gives off heat. It's cheaper to use to dry the washing than a tumble drier too.
It greatly assists the airflow in the house as well.

I think Himself's getting addicted to fixing 'won't come on' ones from eBay though. It's apparently a simple fix once you know how. We now have five !
I run three. One in the kitchen, one upstairs and one in the living room. So the two spares are going to Son1.

It's not a hot/hot heat, but it's the kind of background warm air heat that's actually very comfortable.

Mind though, I live in a sodden wet bit of the world, I think they'd be miserable in Canada's dry cold.

M

 

[RickDastardly]

We run two dehumidifiers here. Both Meaco compressor types; a big 20L one that lives in the outbuilding on the kitchen, and a 10L 'silent' one on the landing (my backside it's silent! - but it is a bit quieter than the big one). The house would rot without them. Keeping the air drier likely costs us less overall than heating the damp air. That's my hope, anyway, but we need them regardless. Only trouble is that they barely work in the cold. The one in the outbuilding (which has the combi boiler and a big freezer in it) basically sulks and shuts itself off 90% of the time in Winter. It does drop to 5C in there though.

Even in the Summer, they come in handy for drying clothes because it rains so much.

The dessicant types (the proper motorized ones, not the ones that you change the dessicant in) are better in the cold but cost a lot more to run because they have actual heaters in them. Great for boats too, apparently.

 

[MaC]

Ours are the dessicant ones, and they are absolutely excellent. They are still cheap to run.

They are Meaco Zambezi ones, and they have been brilliant. The older two are still working well, but one's noisy (well, I can't hear it, but Son2 complains) I reckon Son1 can run that one in his kitchen and not fret.

M

 

[RickDastardly]

Oh, I like the look of the Zambezis. I almost went for one when we needed a second, but it would have had to go in the outbuilding where it would be beneficial in the cold. That would have left the very noisy 20L one we already had to go on the landing, and the noise gets on my nerves.

Actually, they don't use that much more power, looking at it again. 350W for the Zambezi compared to 220W for ours. Might not need to run for as long either. If the 20L ever packs up (it's been running 6 years straight) I might think about a Zambezi again for out there.