How we SPEND $1200 per month on Groceries | TWO people
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 18 มิ.ย. 2022
- The first 1,000 people to use my link to sign up will get a 1 month free trial of Skillshare: skl.sh/ceciliablomdahl06221
How do we spend $1200 per month on groceries, in a household with 2 people?! Well... we live on Svalbard an island close to the North Pole 🙈 Come shopping with me in our only grocery store in Longyearbyen, where I show you some prices and what we have available to us this far north! I hope you enjoy the video! 🧡
𝄞 All music is from Epidemic Sound, affiliate link below or:
Use code CECILIA50 FOR 50% OFF the annual Personal Plan subscription
www.epidemicsound.com/referra...
↠ SUBSCRIBE for new videos every week! / ceciliablomdahl
↠ Instagram: / sejsejlija
↠ Tiktok: vm.tiktok.com/ZMeHEygbT/
♡ How you can support us!
↠ PATREON / ceciliablomdahl
↠ Amazon Storefront: www.amazon.com/shop/ceciliabl...
↠ MERCH: cecilia-blomdahl.creator-spri...
♡ Camera gear:
↠ Sony a7iii + Tamron lens
↠ Sony a7c + Tamron lens
↠ DJI Mavic 3 Cine
About Cecilia:
Cecilia Blomdahl is originally from Sweden and moved to Svalbard 6.5 years ago. She works as a photographer and videographer in Longyearbyen, and with her social media channels. Check her out on tiktok and instagram under her handle @sejsejlija! Here on youtube she posts videos about her daily life in her cabin with her boyfriend Christoffer and her dog Grim, living just outside of Longyearbyen. Subscribe for videos about her daily life as well as adventures on an island close to the North Pole. They have polar bears there!
![ถ้าพี่วุ้นท้อง แป้งจะท้องไปด้วยกัน !!!! [ดูคลิปเต็มหน้าช่อง] #Short | PANG ORNHIRA](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/FeyEnVMwitA/mqdefault.jpg)
Being born in a country where foods in general are dirt cheap like Vietnam and ended up living now in Finland, my eyes tear up every time I have to spend ~€4 for a tiny mango. Summer fruits like watermelon, dragonfruits, pineapple, etc used to be so available for me have now became luxury items. When you live in a climate that so dang difficult to grow anything, you just become so grateful for anything you can get your hands on, I guess.
@@nifnavje according to my own account, gas price isn't lower here than the rest of Europe. Baltics sea isn't clean so fishes are imported, many other European countries also provide free school meals. Finland is in fact the 5th most expensive country in Europe. Even though I am paying properly more for everything, I am happy being here for other reasons
What about European fruits like berries, apples, pears etc.? Aren't they cheaper?
@@RosesAndIvy Not in Finland, nope. Most of those comes from Spain and Netherlands. Finnish origined ones are even more expensive. In the end, if you wants things affordable, try to avoid Northern European countries. However, if you want overall quality of life, like affordable healthcare, education, good social security and never have to deal with corruption, etc then they are the destination 😉
I’ve never thought of Finland as being a hard climate to grow anything? Can you elaborate? Canadian here so I have no idea what Europe is like period but if it’s just a condense living thing, I do believe there are ways around that.
@@Jazzatic2011 I'm not a farmer so I cannot give you the details but pretty much everything grown locally is at least 50% more expensive than imported goods. Parts of it could be labour costs and taxes but it could
also be difficulties due to extreme weather. I personally have a tiny kitchen garden. I do grow anything I want but the success rates with anything else rather than common short-term crops is low, that is for me being at the very southern part of the land. Could be me just being bad at growing stuffs but I can only speak for myself :)
Even ignoring the fact that this grocery store has no competition, it is surprisingly well stocked and organized. That’s fascinating to me!
Thats Norway :D Norway is so rich they make even store like this good lol
im a cashier in a Canadian grocery store and food is so expensive here that these prices don't seem to far off of ours, i always get customers complaining about the prices as if i made them lol
Here in the US, some places is pushing $15/gallon for milk! yet our wages are still at $7.25. (in comparison, a gallon of milk in 2019 was just $3) An honest hour of work used to get you two gallons of gas, or milk, or like 5 loafs of bread. Now? its extremely saddening. One hour of labor doesn't earn us a gallon of milk, barely a gallon of gas, and now i've had to buy $2 pre-made sandwiches because breads and delimeats are $10+
I was literally just thinking this! Some things are literally cheaper than they are in no frills
Lol I'm watching this and being like, wait a minute....this isn't very different from Canada
Anna we all know that you control the global trade of produce and you set the prices so high for us so you can live a life of luxury.. 😂🙄
I agree. And we Canadians have diary, fresh produce,meats, farms,fishing,,, we are an agriculture country. not north pole freight and shipping where no farms in yet our prices are high
The prices on many items you chose are not much higher than prices in the USA right now during this period of high inflation, and the price of your apples was actually less than I paid for 3 apples the other day in my town. It was fun to see your market. And I am envious of all the fresh fish you two caught. Fish where I live is expensive because I am not near any large bodies of water. Thank you for sharing with us.
Yes! The exact oat milk they bought - on sale I’ve never seen it below $3.99. When it is at the sale price I buy 6 boxes because regular price is $5.49 avg.
I was thinking the same thing
Exactly. I live in Australia and although we are surrounded by the ocean, fish is outrageously expensive. I don't understand why.
Most of the things you pointed out were surprising cheap compared to what they would cost in Canada!
20 USD for a watermelon in season is nuts. Out of season maybe 9 USD. Perhaps for a larger one too. In season stateside a larger melon than that, at a not cheap place is 5 USD.
The selection of items was amazing for a village of approx 2500. Having to keep a 3 months inventory must add to the costs. I'm amazed at how much is available and the modern housing.
I dont think so... they not use machines to keep cool the food... maybe! :v
I think you are right. They must pay (buy or rent) the storage space, and have an extra cost on labor as it requires more manpower to manage a 3 months inventory (do not underestimate the cost of logistics).
I love Christopher’s face when you asked him questions in the supermarket. He’s like: “let’s just grab things and go…” 😆
My mood in the supermarket also 😅
Exactly how my partner acts when I’m being flippant in the store😂
My husband only visits a grocery store 2-3 times a year. He despises shopping!
I know - he's a trip isn't he ??!!
I know - he's a trip isn't he ??!!
The prices of food here in Ontario, Canada is accually more expensive. Suddenly the price of everything has gone crazy. A pound of butter is $7.99. Eggs × 12 $4.99 etc I can't believe how much the prices have gone up .Love from Ontario. Canada 🇨🇦 🍁 💖💫
well then leave that leftist area and move elsewhere. and stop eating butter. I quit butter and now use diet mayo instead; one third the calories, taste way better and cost way less. eggs, buy the liquid carton instead, i get wayyy more than using whole intact eggs.
Every shop the prices climb another 2 bucks. Coffee is getting ridiculous.
I know I was watching this and thinking to myself that the prices were cheap compared to Alberta LOL.
Wow that was a huge difference. I now live in Slovenia and we have a pound of butter for 3.99 and I already thought it was expensive ... Anyways, thanks for the insight :D
Wow and I thought $3.99 for a pound of butter in the US was a lot. Our eggs (organic) are around the same price.
Very impressed with the amount and variety in your food store. I live in Pennsylvania, USA and our prices aren’t too far off from Svalbard! An exception being the watermelon…
I did a quick crosscheck on prices here in the midwest US--not that much different. In fact, flour and apples were more expensive here!
i was about to say its less or cheaper for them than my diet...
I'm in new England. Not unusual to see avocados for 5.00$ EACH 🤣 that's why I don't buy them, also, we Americans are the only ones that seem to sell milk by the gallon, ( that I have seen so far, compared to Europe) which btw is practically same prices as gallon of gas.
I live in PA and strawberries are $7 a quart.
You beat me to it, but yes, the prices that Cecilia pays and what I pay in central Indiana are not much different these days! The prices used to be much less before Bidenflation set in (opps, did I just say that?? 😆) but honestly, I think I could shop there in Longyearbyen for about the same that I pay here. How cool is that!
@@papabear562 super curious because nobody has been able to explain it to me (maybe I’m just dumb) how Biden has caused inflation to happen! My conservative friends are always joking about it and I see memes and comments like this but I just don’t get it. Which of his specific policies and actions directly caused inflation and was it him alone?
Is it bad that I live in a city in west/central Canada and am marveling at how reasonably priced most of these items are? 😂Such is life when you live in a place where everything fresh has to be imported! (At least, for most of the year in Canada.) The strawberries in particular is what struck me - they're cheaper right now because they're in season for the summer and can be grown locally, but I've definitely paid over $12CAD for that size in the winter. The oat milk, juice, and meat don't strike me as "expensive" right now either!
Yup, totally agreed. My parents went to Costco and saw the pair of olive oils were only $1 more than usual. So my mom thinks it's already a good price since the mark up for that is only 50cents each bottle. She bought 3 pairs (total of 6 bottles). Also got a box of 18 mangos for $10 which is a good price also. Overall, prices at Costco was still decent with a few sales. I would definitely buy a bunch of fruits now and freeze them. Summer is great for gardening, my garden has lots of kale grown, and possibly tomatoes so we can save money on some veggies. With inflation so high we pick and choose what we can and should buy/eat. I'm sure most families are also doing that.
It’s not bad! I live in Los Angeles and spend almost that much on strawberries even though almost everything grows here in California😣 I buy mostly all organic so I guess…
Here in Toronto, 1lb of butter is $6-$8 - in fact most of the prices aren’t much less than Svalbard.
It’s certainly a very nice looking grocery store. Very clean, modern and well organized.
Hi Cecilia, the whole world is taken the hit with this inflation. Here in the USA, even shopping at Walmart is expensive now ! For an island like Svalvard, it's not bad.
I agree. The prices don't seem to be that bad.
It's like you said, you can go super budget with the food. Only buy frozen veggies, buy plenty flour and make your own bread/pasta, then of course lean heavily on fish you catch yourself during summer and then freeze all year round.
But I too need my apples and citrus fruits, damned be the cost.
When your avocado is just ripe, maybe less than a day from perfect, put them in the fridge and they will keep like that for a couple of weeks. I just pull one out the night before and it ripens right up for breakfast.
I do this and avocados last so much longer!! Place in the fridge a little before perfect to pines and it’ll last so much longer! Xx
Even for milk, you can safely store frozen milk in your freezer for up to 6 months, but it's best if you can use it within 1 month of freezing
We put our avocado in the fridge and take them out a day before and pop them with the bananas to finish ripening them.
Better to place them in water if you're putting them in the refrigerator, to avoid too rapid of a breakdown of the pectinase within the fruit that can occur if your refrigerator is too cold.
@@pansprayers it’s actually not good to put them in water! They could grow harmful bacteria. I used to think this was fine but recently found out it’s not so good.
Congrats on hitting 700K! Love your videos, so serene and beautiful in any season. Take Care.
In the UK people often complain about prices but I've noticed food is cheaper than many places. I do think watermelons are pricey at £3 but after you paid 17euros I can't complain! Oatly is £1.30 so similar in Euros x
Just visited the EK (Edinburgh and London) from US and the food is WAY less expensive, even eating out. Cocktails were only 12£! Where I live, they are at least $14
6 US, and the "nice" places, $20, $26.
It would be interesting though to see what average wages, pensions , housing and fuel bills are too though.
For the price, I’d freeze some avocados. Mash them with lemon or lime juice and store in a quart size freezer bag. Squeeze out the extra air and seal it up. Should be good for several months. Makes great avocado toast, guacamole and is pretty good with sushi.
You can submerge uncut avocados in water and keep them in the fridge. They last a long time that way!
@@waterfallsandrain You can do that if you would like salmonella. FDA came out with a recommendation to not do that because there has been several case reports about people getting salmonella that way. I will pass on that!
**edit it was the FDA not the CDC**
Or just put them in the fridge when they're ripe
I put mine in smoothies
You can freeze avocados once they go ripe and they are perfectly good for months. I know, I didn't believe it either until I did it lol. I volunteered at a food pantry and we were gifted two huge boxes of avocados that were so ripe you couldn't even pick them up without putting your thumb through the skin. We tried to give them away and people weren't interested so a couple of us decided we would take them home and figure something out instead of just wasting them.
I scooped all of the meat out and portioned it into "guacamole sized servings" 😅 (maybe two cups?) and put them in bags that I sealed with my food sealer. I tossed them in the freezer and 6 months later we were having "fresh" guacamole with our New Year's Eve dinner.
You don't want to put anything in with it - Don't make the guacamole and THEN try to freeze it or you're going to end up with a disgusting bag of mush. The tomato and onion add too much moisture to the mix - just freeze the avocado all by itself and once it's thawed you use it just like it was fresh - add your ingredients and let people wonder how they have fresh guac on their tacos in February.
They don't go brown, the texture changes a tad but it's so minor that you don't even notice. Believe me... I'm not proud of the fact that I can be a little picky with my food sometimes and I have no problem with frozen avocado.
Cecelia did you know if your avocado is ripe but you’re not ready to eat it you can freeze it. Then when you thaw it out it is perfect. No more wasted avocados! 😊
I live in Scotland, fairly near Glasgow with my husband and son. Our weekly shop is around £50, shopping at Aldi and being vegetarian definitely helps. The thought of not having a choice of where to shop is mind-boggling to me!
we are in London family of four and spend at least x4 that much per week and are vegan and gluten free.....what do you buy ..? plus eating out is expensive
I shop at Aldi twice a week and I feel that they are trying to make all Germans vegetarian. Just in the last year, I stand at the meat area and there is nothing I can afford.
@@playmeagain I live in Glasgow with 3 children and I spend the same as you 😭 my children like eating 😂
Food has been high for awhile here in Canada and it's going up again. I now know people who can pay their bills and not afford food. I'm in the middle of setting up an emergency shelter but I anticipate a huge increase in those who will be accessing our food programs. I know your videos are usually light and positive but this highlights a sobering issue where I live. Thank you for sharing your life.
Many well wishes on your endeavors. May you have much to give and may there be few in need.
It’s looking bleak in the States as well. So many barely making it, becoming homeless or moving into their vehicles.
It’s not only the gas prices but the price of rent and utilities rising at an alarming rate at which ppl are not capable of sustaining.
Renting a room in my area starts at $1,000 and that’s not including utilities and often no access to the rest of the home.
I'm also Canadian and also work in emergency shelter and with homelessness. With rising cost of food, affordable housing, gas etc.... the needs just keeps increasing. All the best in your program work.
Canadian here too. I live in Manitoba and a lot of the prices she showed in the video are comparable to our prices here. I used to live in Nunavut and 20 yrs ago a 4L Jug of milk was $16!! We bought a Watermellon once!! it was $60.
You are a great person, that is so amazing!
Can confirm that living on the Canadian East Coast is quite similar to what she is paying for groceries :/ I even live in a province (Nova Scotia) that grows its own apples and they still cost an arm and a leg most of the year. The recent inflation in general hasn't helped anything either. My husband and I have decent jobs but still need to be careful not to go too crazy. The number of people asking for money on the streets and at traffic lights have gone up too. I try to pass along a toonie if I have one, but don't usually carry cash. Things are getting tough for sure.
That is wise keeping a three-month supply of food stocked up considering the community is 100% dependent on imports. If there is one thing this pandemic has taught, is that just-in-time supply chains can have breakdowns.
More like a year would be better
Every household should have at least a years worth of food stored in their house. Other than milk and eggs and fresh fruit and veggies.
@@alk3078 ,
I have at least a Year's worth a lot of canned pork tuna fish canned salmon chicken I have a lot of canned vegetables a lot of them dated 2024 flour sugar some beans and rice but not fond of that as long as my freezer holds up plus two refrigerators I'd say I have close to a years worth of canned cat food if I find a deal I keep buying more
@@debbieframpton3857 Way to go 👍
@@alk3078 where do you keep them though? I've thought I should do this but just don't have the room. I'm in the UK, we probably have smaller houses I don't know 🤷♂️.
A few weeks ago at our local farmers market I bought a watermelon for $6US dollars and almost had a stroke. It was locally grown and the absolutely best Watermelon we have ever had. So I went back the following week and bought another WM. We spent a lot on groceries cause we try to buy from local farmers. I feel fortunate we can do that.
Top tip: The larger and deeper in color the yellow spot is (where the melon lay in the field), the sweeter the fruit.
Growing up in Barrow Alaska in the 1970s, the store had milk for $8 a gallon. We never bought any. We had to drink orange powdered milk. It was orange from the rusty water that came from the pipes. Most of our food came in on the barge in the fall and it had to last all winter. Food could come in by plane but it was too expensive. The upside was that my dad always ordered cases of Oreos and Strawberry Crush soda to last us all winter.
Yah! for the Oreos and Strawberry Crush :)
K?
What a guy lol thats sick
Wtf!? How are your teeth, if you still have any? Do any, or most of you, have diabetes? Just curious. 😐
@@redhammer5783 exactly. The crap the poor have to endure. 🙄
High cost of living I think many of us can relate to that currently! I hope summer is filled with joy for you guys
Thank you for sharing a small bit of daily life with us.
Food here in the US has skyrocketed recently, sending everyone into sticker shock so your video isn't as over the top as you may think! 😉 EXCEPT for that watermelon price...holy mackerel!
Watermelon in Kansas City is $7.00. Other than that everything else seems close in price.
Everything is about the same price in Cleveland, Ohio. We are a port city and everything has skyrocketed in price-practically overnight!
I agree. NYC has become sooo expensive
I don't know where you shop your milk and other groceries, but certain things here like eggs, milk, bacon etc. is way higher.
I was going to say some thing similar. I will say that the prices aren’t that much higher than the US right now but the sizes are smaller. The oatly is about half the size of ours for the same price and the bacon looked like a very small package
The prices in the Canadian far north (Yukon, NWT, and Nunavut) are FAR higher than in Svalbard. You also have substantially better selection and quality.
I think that is probably true for the outback areas in Australia too. Even where I am in Hervey Bay, Queensland, about 4 hours from Brisbane, grocery prices are high atm. Vegetables are expensive as the floods we had on the east coast recently affected a lot of the vegetable farming areas very badly. Plus it's our winter now so things are not growing so quickly.
I’d love to see the type of meals you make with your staples or the fish you and Christopher caught! Thanks for sharing! 😊
I like your food shop videos, I love seeing the different type of food you can get ❤
Hi. Love the video. Can you do a video one day showing where you get your water at in town and the containers and how you bring it back and fill your water tank. How often do you do it. How much does it cost you for the water. I think that would be interesting as most people have running water in their homes. Thx. Love your channel.
I've recently stumbled upon your videos and I'm just amazed how much effort you put into them. So many beautiful shots and I love that you add so much info about the place you're living in. Thank you for that!
🧡🧡🧡
@@CeciliaBlomdahl please watch Jim Nduruchi
I’m in the New Orleans area (southern US) and until you got to the produce, the prices of things didn’t seem outrageous, but I admit I’ve never seen $16 bacon! Here, I get 4 avocados for $5.00 USD, and a watermelon of the size you bought is about $4.00. Looking at everything you bought, a comparable shopping trip probably would have cost about $60-$75 here.
yeah I was like that would cost like 60 euros here, in europe - slovakia
I adore your videos. I found your channel last November, I believe, and watched all throughout Christmas season. Life got busy for me and I wasn’t able to watch as much as before. I recently rediscovered your channel and I am really enjoying it. I truly hope I can someday visit there. Thanks for your videos.
Your grocery store and warehouse are both so clean and organized. The Scandinavian way!❤
Protip on the pork belly: that package, even for the higher calories required for extreme climates, can be used in up to three meals for two or six adult servings. Break it down into individual meal allotments (cheap digital scales are LIFE), and freeze them until use. I literally measure out everything for my husband and I, out of pure habit from getting my degree.
Hi Cecilia Thank you for a very informative video and making the trouble to convert all the prices , I thoroughly enjoyed your video. That water melon was super expensive but hey as you said its a rare treat and enjoy it.
This was very interesting. Thanks for doing this and I would love to see more of these in the future
I live in the center of America. I spend roughly 400 (budget) to about 600 (treating myself decent) each month.
I spend about the same here in Montana! That includes 4-7 trips to local coffee shops a month and maybe 1-4 take outs. I always try to spend 100 a week on food, but it usually ends up costing more (about 120-130).
You can mash avocados and freeze them The texture is a little different when they thaw but they're still good when I mash them I add a little bit of lemon juice or lime juice too to keep the browning at a minimum.
Great idea!
I like this idea… thank you for sharing it, JJ Butter beans! I’ve also bought frozen avocado chunks that have lasted well in the freezer.
If you mash them with about 5 g of baking soda per two large avacados before freezing, it avoids the weird texture breakdown that occurs when pectinase is exposed to low temperatures.
@@pansprayers~ OK... now I want to go out and get some avocados to try these tips! Thank you!
Hi from Australia ...getting sunburnt here in the winter
Hey Cecilia, love your videos :)
Me and my boyfriend in Portugal for our groceries we spend around 300 euros per month for the two, and that includes fish, meat and all of that.
Aloha from the USA HAWAII!! I love your stories mahalo so much for letting us into your lives on your beautiful ISLAND!!! ANd it does pay to live in paradise!
I live on the Canadian prairies, and some fresh produce is priced pretty closely to what you pay on Svalbard, depending on the time of year (e.g. asparagus is $7/lb in winter, but $1.50/lb in summer). Flour, lentils, hemp, flax, and mustard, are super cheap year-round because it's grown locally.
u can get canned asparagus much cheaper
Fun to see how much prices are different from other countries. Some products don't seem to be that expensive, whereas others are crazy expensive.
That was really interesting! I was actually surprised a lot of things cost not at lot more than here in Australia (I looked at the USD and added about 40% in my head for the approx AUD). I have done a lot of travel in the outback, we always try to stock up in the bigger towns at major supermarkets because they only have slightly elevated prices because of the transport costs. If you need anything in the small towns, it's a Wild West of pricing - non perishable grocery items can be 4-5 times the price, bread and milk is frozen, and don't even try to buy fresh produce, it doesn't exist.
leave australia.
Prices are increasing here in the U.S. too. I think the entire world is feeling the effects of inflation. It's good your supermarket keeps 3 months of food supplies on hand because global food shortages might be on the way. It might be a good idea for you and Christoffer to have some extra canned foods on hand. Informative vlog!
Food prices even here in Australia have gone thru the roof and apparently some stuffs are set to go higher. So i do understand for sure. Gorgeous views you have just LOVE them
Great video Cecilia. I love seeing how shops and prices are different in different countries, and your prices are pretty scary 😲 but having read some of the comments I can see that you are not alone. It's a very depressing time for all of us 😔
the LAMB on the toilet paper is so cute
I love your channel, your videos make me feel so calm and relaxed
💙💙💙
I was surprised that some of the prices were pretty comparable to Maryland, USA. But then prices have skyrocketed all over the world lately.
Yeah I'm on Maryland too. Eggs are like $3.49 here right ? Milk is cheaper here for sure . 2- qts is $1.79 at trader Joe's today, watermelon is not $18.00, mustard probably the same. Avocados at cheaper stores are $1.50.
If your near an Amish market you can make out really well.
Could you please explain what the habitants of the island ate 100 years ago , and if possible what was their life like . Thank you 🇫🇷🇫🇷
I don´t think people lived there a hundred years ago. Did they? Does anyone know?
@@MM-bh7me You can find this easily on Wikipedia. It was used as a base for whalers since the 17th century and from the 20th century coal mining brought permanent habitants.
@@powexor Thank you, Samuel! I also went to Wikipedia to read that, but was to lazy to add the information here. Felt a bit ashamed when I saw your comment. Thank you again!
They probably had a variable diet. Cod, halibut and whale maybe some moss.
My grandmother lived there 60 years ago. They’d eat mostly dried cod and potatoes brought from the mainland. To get vitamins they’d bring large barrels of lingonberry jam. My grandmother worked at the bakery, so they would also eat baked goods.
I love watching a food shop at your supermarket! Most of your groceries cost about double the equivalent in £ Sterling here in the UK. Your more exotic fruit/veg is about 4 times the equivalent UK price.
As a Brit living in Finland I already felt I’d found peace but now after finding you, I want to move to svalbard , it looks lovely
Once your avocados ripen you can keep them in the refrigerator and they’ll stay that level of ripeness for at least a week.
Whaaaaat!
For the avocados, I learned an amazing tip. Once they are ripe, throw them in the fridge if you're not going to eat it right away. They stay good for WAY longer that way.
They really do. Also using a “Food Saver” or other brand of food sealer is great for a Avocados. I use half the avocado and seal the other half and it keeps for several days.
@@happygirl65 or if you don't have a food saver and just use half, cover it very snuggly with regular plastic wrap it helps keep it for a couple of days at least . 😉
@@happygirl65 I do that and its brilliant.
Compared to my home country, Germany, which probably has some of the cheapest groceries in Europe, the prices are mind boggling.
However, having lived in Norway, the prices don’t seem crazy compared to the mainland, especially when the transport is factored in. I learned to buy mostly frozen and canned vegetables except for root veg when I lived there on a student budget (I don’t think I ever had watermelon there) 😅
To be fair, 250gr of Butter cost atm in Germany around 2,50€ to 3€, so that 500gr of butter for 4,83€ was insanely cheap (given that it must be shipped up there and here we have farms in walking distance).
I just found your channel this morning. Wow!! Can I come live with you guys lol. I love the snow and cold and remote area!! Lol. Can't wait to see more of your videos. Much love from Missouri. Natalie
Honestly.. right now in the US the prices are very similar, at least where I live.
Where? What, specifically?
@@lillian5982 ??????????
You have not paid $20 for a watermelon lol
Nice video, Cecilia. FYI: for avocados, get them well before they are ripe and put them in a paper bag. They'll ripen perfectly in a few days. And once they are ripe, you can store them in your refrigerator no problem for a week or two.
You don't need the paper bag, as avacados don't ripen on the tree, they ripen over time after being harvested. All you have to do is toss them on the counter for about four days, and they'll ripen on their own. The paper bag method only speeds it up by about a day, and is best accomplished by adding a banana or apple, if you're going for the asthetic (green) look that will introduce the proper amount of carbon dioxide to the skin. But literally, all you have to do is toss them on the counter for a couple of days, and let nature do it's thing 🤷♂️
I live in California--eat tons of avocados--and have never had one rippen in a paper bag. It's a myth in my experience! We use our pantry and they do great.
Yes, fridge is the best how to keep them for weeks in perfectly ripe condition, saved so many avocado lifes :D
Yup, I buy 2 of the bags of 6 (my family eats a LOT of avos) and the bags sit on the counter until they go into the fridge on day 4. And while they're ripening we eat the ones from last week that are in the fridge (Avos for me are $3 for 6).
@@stacey738 Same here!
This was interesting, really enjoy your videos and learning what it’s like to live somewhere so unique to me. Have you thought about doing what meals you make in a day or week type video-would be interesting. Thanks and keep up the beautiful vlogs!
Always love your videos such a different world than what I live in I can't even begin to wonder how you survive but you seem to be doing it very well.
That was really interesting. The prices here in Scotland have increased drastically this year but our imported watermelons are still only around £3.50 (€4 roughly) so your price is eye-watering!
I paid 7 bucks for a watermelon today in the US 😭
@@odilebuoncristiano9221 damn that is extortion 😂
Paid 0.60 EUR/Kg in Cyprus for watermelon (1/2 was around 5Kg) 2 weeks ago in supermarket.
@@lukaszbien2904 so jealous. Here in the Netherlands it is about €1,50 a kg at most markets, and more at the supermarket.
I was just about to come here to say that yeah, Scotland prices are heading in a similar direction!
😱 for what you spent I buy my entire months worth of food and supplies. That's so crazy, but I also understand that it's all shipped in and that makes the price so much higher. I also live in Costa Rica so our fruits and vegetables are very inexpensive. However anything that comes from America cost twice as much as it would in the states. Those things are my " luxury items"... ( usually it's dill pickles and Sriracha for me)😂🤣 So considering where you live and how it gets to you... I think it's pretty "normal" price wise.
Put the avocadoes in the fridge once ripe....you can get 3-5 more days of shelf life from them. Watermelon should be heavy, have a yellow spot on the spot where it was on the ground (more yellow more ripe), and have a deep bass sound when you knock on it.
These shopping videos are my favorite videos you do
Your energy is so fresh and friendly 😍thanks for sharing
🧡🧡🧡🧡
I’m in SoCal..
• dozen eggs is $6.99
• gallon of milk $4.99,
• Oatly $5.99,
•avocados $3.50/ea,
• bleached flour is $5.49 & unbleached is $8.49
• 12 rolls TP (mega rolls) $16.99 & 24 (mega rolls) $26.99
😩
A dozen eggs is $7?!? That is scary! I am in NJ and a dozen eggs are $2
@@jenniferw1595 it is very scary and I’m thankful I don’t care for eggs too much.
I am sure if I look for deals and coupon I could find them cheaper but these are the current prices @ the grocery store in my neighborhood.
Hey there! Great advice on the avocado picking. In addition, I gently remove the avocado stem tip and look to see if it's a nice clear green . If it has black specks under the stem then no bueno! Then gently replace the root back. And ofc like you said I like to pick them in 3 different ripeness! Never fails good luck and love your vlogs! Ty😌
Your windows look pretty bright. You might be able to grow salad greens right in the window. They’re cool weather crops so the cool air near the windows wouldn’t bother them.
Hello Cecilia, Christoffer, Grim and Fenris😍. With inflation here in the U.S., the prices in Svalbard are pretty similar to our own. Well, except for that watermelon! Wow.
I LOVE that there is a mandatory leash period. I live in an environmental reserve, and this year a family with a bird dog moved in next door. Guess how well that has been going...
That's terrible! Where is this in the world? Even if there is no mandatory leash period, can't the (conservation) police do anything?
@@Kowalski301 Well maybe. I could look into if the harm to the wildlife is a violation of our national Wildlife Act.
I live in the state of WA, near Seattle, and the four things that were extra expensive in your haul were: Toilet Paper (I could get that for about $8), Eggs (about $4), and milk ($2), and of course the watermelon ($8). Apples are a dollar each in my area, which is ridiculous since we grow them here. I walked past two apple trees on my walk yesterday.
Didn’t know I needed to watch this video but the algorithm decided for me. Loved it!
Great, informative video!
The Wifey & I watched and compared things to that we buy. The sizes were of course different on the bottled/container items but we roughly added it up and guesstimated that you guys might spend almost double what we pay here in Texas.
Now the watermelon, WOW! We might pay $6-8 USD for that though!
Always love the Grim & Finvess (sp?) shots. Our dog Roger (our last name is Moore)will sometimes watch them.
Thanks for all your hard work bringing bits of your life to us. It’s fun for us to see how other people around the world live. 👍🏼⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Erin & Michael
This reminds of prices in Iceland, that are similar. I bought a few items at Target this morning (near L.A.). Some prices are: Bananas 29 cents each, drinking water $1.19 one liter bottle, Head & Shoulders shampoo $5.99, peaches $1.59 each, Lactaid 2% milk approx $4 two liters/half gallon, Quaker Oatmeal $2.89 (they say 8 servings, I say 4), fruit cups $2.39 (4), Smuckers jam $3.89 for a jar, pack of cherry tomatoes $3.39, four bottles Starbucks frapaccino drinks ($6.99).
I used to live in the Northwest of Western Australia and we always kept 12 weeks of 'cyclone rations' in case the weather cut us off from civilisation. It's a habit that's hard to break and I still keep a huge pantry stock
Exceptionally well stocked grocery store! I think that Chris would prefer going to the dentist and getting a tooth pulled over shopping
Prices here in Anchorage, Alaska, USA are about the same, higher in some cases. We have a very similar food shipping situation here.
Alaska sucks tho
Don't you get a lot by train? My family is in Fairbanks and says a lot comes on trains.
@@carochan86 fairbanks gets stuff from anchorage by train. The ports deliver to anchorage then go all over the state
@@lorifarmer9692 ah cool . I never knew that .
You did really well in my opinion. I live in N. California and my husband and I spend over $2K every month on food. We eat all produce as we're mostly raw vegans. I applaud you for buying as much produce as you do!!! Would be my priority if I lived there. Enjoy that food!
Bruh why - cooked vegan food could save you a pretty penny
TWO THOUSAND a month on food? are u eating OUT for every meal? what? if u are vegans then why dont u GROW your own food
I live in Australia and after exchange rate it's pretty similar to our grocery prices. So interesting to see how others live and cook !
Was just in Svalbard and grocery prices are definitely cheaper than arctic Canada or northern Alaska. This is because in those places, the sea is frozen 9 months of the year so only air shipments during that time
Being on the west coast of Australia the prices are pretty common to what we have been paying for a couple years now. Several times I caught myself thinking "I figured it would have cost more". One of the few things cheaper are butter and eggs, but we also have many local farms who make great produce.
not what other Australians have said. on a variety of locations.
@@aragorn4242 Coming from an Australian about Australia - you have a lot of price variation depending on where exactly you live. I was living in the mid north of my state until I recently moved back to the costal areas, and the difference is notable. What OP is saying tracks with what I know about WA prices.
In Australia it's really varied. I'm in Canberra and I discovered this one IGA where the vegetables are suspiciously cheap. Under $2 a kg for sweet potatoes, broccoli, oranges, granny smith apples etc. Coriander is under $2. Asian vegetables usually around $3. But that's not indicative of most of the prices in Canberra - at the moment things like wombok or lettuce can be anything from $5 to $12. Also it's only the vegetables in the IGA that are cheap - the other goods are more expensive so I only buy veggies there. Asian shops are good for coriander, Asian vegetables and spices.
The differences in prices between the Svalbard islands and my country (Italy) is rather important, probably because you live very far from the Continent, in a remote place. Moreover the fact that there is only one grocery shop without any competition is fundamental, so that they try to take advantage of it. Unfortunately also in Italy prices are increasing more and more and this is mainly due to the higher costs of electricity, gas and petrol which affect the cost of food. We are two people and we spend about € 200 per week (only for food). Anyway there is a wide range of supermarkets..so we can choose. Thank you for sharing this awesome video with us.
I see a lot of people saying the cost is compatable and I have to agree...Prices in Western NY, US are very similar to this also. It is crazy to think an area as remote as yours has comparably priced groceries, but I love that for your community. Without competition, your supermarket could be so unfair, but they appear quite reasonable, and so neat and organized!
Thanks for sharing. That was really interesting to see grocery shopping in another country and the prices.
I had those Nocco drinks when I was in Iceland! They have some nice flavors- mango, etc. Because the caffeine addiction is real and often I cannot be bothered to wait for coffee😅
Would love a video on how the climate crisis is affecting Svalbard. I hear there's even flowers there now?
Just found your channel.
I live in Costa Rica 10 degrees from the Equator.
Veggies and fruit grown here are dirt cheap. US food and prepared food and meat are not.
There are bananas, plantains, mangoes, coconuts, papayas etc growing everywhere. There is no need to go hungry here.
We don't need to heat the house and most times do not need AC.
I live at the beach and it stays around 80 to 85 degrees all year round with an ocean breeze.
Our darkness.(nights) last from 6pm to 5am every day all year.
I enjoy your vlogs so much. Your lives are so different from ours.
You won't see a reindeer roaming here, but look out for the thieving monkees!
Thank you so much. Hope to see you again soon.
I'm new to your channel and I'm not sure if I like it yet. But I wanted to say that you must be doing a great job here in YT, as well as life in general because you attracted such an intelligent community
My husband and I used to spend around $1300 while living in the Bay Area, California. Fresh vegetables and fruits were always our priority. To me it seems normal. Love your channel and the video is wonderful!
Interesting video on shopping experience. I would say your prices are at least double the amount we pay in the UK. Our Lidl supermarket is consistently cheaper than other supermarkets.
Bravo to the market for having a 3 month back up!
So happy to find this Chanel my friend recommended
Very interesting. Thanks for sharing! :)
Australian food prices can be quite high at times due to us exporting a lot of our produce (thus reducing local supply and increasing prices). Our import costs are high due to being so far removed from the rest of the world. But, generally, if you buy in-season and aren't picky you can keep your grocery bill within a reasonable amount. But with climate affecting our crops and global supply-chain interruptions and shortages, etc the prices are going up even for people who shop conservatively/fiscally. Like most other parts of the world we have been dealing with a 10-20% hike in grocery prices since the start of the pandemic. And then recent adverse weather events (floods) have made certain items go up in price 600%. A head of lettuce is normally 1-2 dollars. Now it is 6-12 dollars! (if you can even get it at all). We have had times where a single banana costs a couple of dollars. A watermelon is 20 dollars.
If we didn't export then those wild price swings wouldn't happen as often but we just don't pay our farmers what they deserve so they get better prices internationally for their produce. When there's plenty of supply (ie good weather yields) that isn't an issue and there's enough to go around locally and for exporting. But when crops are in short supply, those international exports make it much more expensive for locals to buy what we need. One of the downsides of a free market.
Shelf-stable items (ie- not fresh produce) is much more consistent pricing. Dairy is usually pretty consistent pricing (milk, cheese, yoghurt, butter, etc). But fruit, vegetables and meat always fluctuate considerably. That's why so many people on low incomes survive off junk. It's cheap year round! Of course you can still prepare nutritious meals on a budget but most of the people who need to do that don't have the time. They have kids to look after or are working two jobs or are too sick to do these things for themselves. So they are often forced to buy cheap and convenient. Such a shame because that creates long-term health problems and is more expensive in the long-run. But our housing market is extremely expensive here so most of our money goes to housing and transport costs (we are a big country and have to drive vast distances for work, etc). A major issue now as our fuel prices are also sky-rocketing and vehicle shortages are becoming a problem too! Our public transport systems here are not great outside of major cities. There's just too much ground to cover and not enough population to make extensive networks viable. And remote work is still not widely accepted, even after the pandemic forced businesses to re-evaluate this. They are encouraging people to go back into offices. So everyone is going back to 1-3hr daily commutes.
So, even though it's a human necessity, food is often low on the list of people's priorities. They would rather eat 2min noodles + tinned food in order to have a roof over their heads & a way to get to work rather than no job, no house but a good freshly-cooked nutritious meal in their belly.
It definitely depends on how you eat but in our household we try to buy good brands with good ingredients (not full of filler ingredients like sugar or flour or palm oil, etc), brands that are sustainable and look after animal welfare (no caged eggs, etc) and the bulk of our shop is fresh food (not processed).... so it adds up VERY quickly. $300/wk minimum ($1200 AUD) for 2 people.
Yep, I would co-sign all of this 👍
Those prices are eye watering. A lot of those items are 4 or 5 times more expensive than in the UK!
It's so interesting to stumble across your video. The prices are very similar to what we have here in Seattle. Your strawberries look way nicer than ours for the same price!
Interesting video Cecilia! Those prices are actually not too far off from what we pay here in Northern Ontario. Except for the watermelon, they are between $6 and $10 lately. I think the milk, eggs, and bacon are actually cheaper at your grocery store.
For the items that I also buy, those prices are slightly higher than what they'd be in my area of the US, but not drastically higher. More in line with Whole Foods vs Kroger price differences. I also try to shop sales and stock up/buy in bulk when I can though, so the prices are probably a lot closer than I am thinking.