July 29, 2010
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Food for a week?
How much do you normally spend on food for a week and how many people does it feed?
1. Germany – $500 a week for food
2. North Carolina, USA – $341.98 a week for food
3. Japan – $317.25 a week for food
4. Italy – $260 a week for food
5. Great Britain – $253 a week for food
6. Kuwait – $221.45 a week for food
7. Mexico – $189.09 a week for food
8. California, USA – $160 a week for food
9. Beijing, China – $155.06 a week for food
10. Poland – $151 a week for food
11. Egypt – $68.53 a week for food
12. Mongolia – $40 a week for food
13. Ecuador – $31.55 a week for food
14. Bhutan – $5 a week for food
15. Breidjing Camp – $1.23 a week for food!!! {Sudanese refugees in Chad}
From the book Hungry Planet: What the World Eats by Peter Menzel and Faith D’Aluisio www.menzelphoto.com.
Comments (27)
WHOA! That last picture made me want to cry. I can’t imagine having only a few items and trying to feed a family of 6 for a week with it. And people talk about food shortages in America. HA! We don’t know what real hunger is!
we spend about $100 per week for our family of 6.. @landers_mommy0520@momaroo - i know what you mean it is so sad.. Dan spent $20 on one meal for 5 of them at micky d’s yesterday and from what I hear it was pretty nasty.
This is food for thought.
Oops posted with the wrong account
Powerful but comparing prices doesn’t even give the real picture unless
you know things like the average income in the different areas, etc.
The high dollar amounts in the U.S. are actually small portions of
average income. The low dollar amounts in the poorer nations are
actually much higher percentages of average income. I remember when I
started sponsoring a child in Ethiopia and found out that the average
YEARLY income is less than I make in a month. Significantly less.
More like what I make in two weeks.
wow, you can even see the difference in the diets alone! my goodness, that is some hard stuff
I am going to share a link to this post….
That was very informative. I am amazed at how much the CA family could get for $160.00. All of us in America should be so very thankful.
We spend anywhere from $150 – $200 per week, and there are three of us. We give away somewhere around half of what we cook, maybe a little more than half actually, so I guess we spend a little less than $75 – $100 per week for three people.
When I think about people starving in the world, I don’t look at what we eat versus what they eat or how much is spent on it here or there. I look at all the unnecessary things we spend our money on, things we’ve been brainwashed into believing we “need”, like game consoles, cellular phone service, cable TV, expensive cars, expensive clothes, expensive houses, stuff like that. The way I see it, every purchase we make and every dollar we spend is our personal statement of priorities. A kid’s gonna die of dehydration, I “need” cellular service. which is more important? An entire family is starving to death, I “need” a fully loaded Escalade to get around (that I’ll be paying for three times over when you include financing. Which is more important? A human being is dying this very instant; hungry, thirsty, skin and bones, lips cracked, bleeding and stuck to their teeth. But I “need” to just get away, maybe have dinner out at a nice restaurant, or maybe even a trip to another country.
Which is more important?
Of course, these vary wildly depending on the family and how they eat. When I lived in England, it seemed that the 20 quid for groceries went further than 20 dollars here.
@AOK4WAY - Walking around with guilt doesn’t impact global economy, and we are blessed to live where and when we do. But our culture is shifting in some dangerous directions.
@NightCometh - I’m not walking around with guilt friend, and the global economy isn’t any of my concern. I saw what I was doing and I repented. I operate on Father’s economy now.
I;ve seen this before, and it blows me away every time.
I am a family of just myself, and in a typical week I spend about $7 on food. When times were really bad, I was eating on less than $1 per week.
That being said, what @radicalramblings said is quite true. The local price and economy may be significantly different, such that 1 USD can get significantly more or significantly less there than 1 USD here. Even locally things change. One loaf store-brand wheat bread in Huntsville costs about $1, while in Dallas that same loaf will run twice the price.
This is a good reminder. :/
That N.C. family made me sick. The amount of processed and pre-packed food on their table shows why they spend nearly $400 to feed such small number of people. There was only a small plate of fruit in the center and I am not even sure there was a single vegetable there. They spend more on food than I make in a month. Someone should send then to Chad for a week.
How much do I spend, less than 50US.
@amygwen - yup…they spend what we make in a week. If we would spend that of groceries we wouldn’t have any money to pay the bills
that really opens your eyes. good post.
I’ve seen this before and I wonder if those prices have been updated since food has gone up quite a bit around our neck of the woods…
We spend $400-500/ month for a family of 6 (that includes toiletries and stuff) and I’m trying to cook more from scratch to cut that down lower
The family from Ecuador looks so sweet
)
Wow. Eye opening post.
That was incredibly interesting. As well as sobering. I love how happy the Ecuadorian family looks, lol.
I have to constantly remind myself not to take having plenty to eat for granted. This post was a needed slap in the face.
I spend about 35 dollars a week on food for just myself.
Very interesting! =]
My geography teacher showed this to us in 12th grade. I was absolutely amazed, to say the least. I try to donate as often as possible to some charities providing food, and especially when people need money for groceries here on Xanga.
I’m not sure where those Californians were shopping, but $160 for a week’s worth of food is a joke.
@Levanna - a joke in what way? too much or too little?
Honestly I’m from NJ my mom spends about $100 a week on food for our family of 6.
ps i love how the american family had this wide array of junk food, fast food and just straight garbage while families such as the Egyptian family had all green and healthy looking foods.
@BeautifulB_227 - FAR too little.
@Levanna - I guess it depends on where you shop and what you buy, like the first american family who spent nearly 400 dollars a week but bought all junk food.
@BeautifulB_227 - I noticed that as well – I think it’s interesting that with the exception of Italy, most of the countries have lower costs, but more vegetables.