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Quitting the Eat Local Challenge While I’m Behind
Terrible timing, or terrible idea?
If you’re not Canadian you likely have no idea who Galen Weston Jr. is, and if you are Canadian, you probably have opinions. Weston Jr. owns the largest food retailer in Canada, Loblaw Companies Limited. There was a boycott. People are neutral or anti-Weston Jr. and Loblaw. The point is that the picture I’m sharing for the July Eat Local check-in is full of President’s Choice products, which is a store brand of Loblaw Companies Limited.
I’ve given up. I quit.
In June I spent a whopping $870 on food, including groceries, alcohol, coffee, and takeout.
In July, though I swore I’d eat out less, I spent $958. I didn’t spend less on takeout, but I spent way more on groceries.
Prior to the challenge, I spent between $300–400 on groceries and between $200–250 on eating out. I was shocked when I spent $550 on groceries in July, and the haul you see above was only $76.
What racked up the bill? I started running out of essentials, like olive oil. And local stores, though I love them and would never expect big sales, never have sales. I bought Canadian – assuming it’s made from domestic and imported ingredients olive oil for $23 for 500 ml. Farm fresh eggs are over $10 for a dozen. Yogurt is $7.99 for 500ml. Milk is $4 a litre.
Some of these things I’ve always splurged for the much high quality local products, but it was also always budget dependent. When necessary I’d go to a discount grocery store to save some money, take advantage of price matching, and use my grocery store points. (I’m happy to never step foot in a Loblaws again, but I love my PC Mastercard.)
If money wasn’t an object and I had more free time (to go to local markets and farm stands, learn how to distinguish between a good price and expensive), I’d happily only eat and shop local. However, it’s not cheaper and depending on your income and family size, it’s not budget friendly.
After spending an outrageous $11.99 on a pint of in season cherry tomatoes, I started asking the price before making selections at the farmers market. Frowned upon.
