Question

What can a family on a low income do to decrease the amount of money spent on food?

Answer 1

A family on a low income can try the following methods to reduce the money spent on food.:-

a) We know food is a basic necessity but unnecessary or extravagant consumption of some good can be burdensome for poor households. Hence the poor houseld should allocate a budget with proper break down on how much money can be spent for each item. This will make purchase of food items more efficient and eliminate unnecessary expenditure.

b) The low income household should also ensure that it actively uses and benefits from government services like rationing of foodgrains, milk etc. This will enable them to save a lot of money from food consumption.

c) Often poor people consume food that lacks proper nutrition. This may have short term cost benefits but in the long run expenditure on health may be very high due to a poorly funcitoning immune system. Hence poor households should not completely compromise on nutrition. They should try to invest on cooking utensils which will be costly in the short run but can be highly beneficial for their health and wealth in the long run.

d) Low income families should avoid wastage of food which will also give them more clarity in allocating budgets. Sticking to a food pattern on a weekly basis can ensure that low income households will be able to monitor their spending also.

These are some of the ways in which low income household can decrease the amount spent on food.