feed a family of 4 for 7 days

[TR 675]

A number of years ago and towards the end of the school year and as part of Charity Week some Sixth Formers would try and survive on £5 for 5 days with the charity connected to "Make Poverty History" surprisingly they managed quite well in terms of calories and nutrition. Key was teaming up with another student and shopping in Indian / Pakistani shops as well as trekking to the market. They got penalised if they used public transport. Some great creative dahl and pasta dishes were made

[Tom Joad]

A number of years ago and towards the end of the school year and as part of Charity Week some Sixth Formers would try and survive on £5 for 5 days with the charity connected to "Make Poverty History" surprisingly they managed quite well in terms of calories and nutrition. Key was teaming up with another student and shopping in  Indian / Pakistani shops as well as trekking to the market. They got penalised if they used public transport. Some great creative dahl and pasta dishes were made

This is the key, get your protein from lentils, chickpeas etc. I have periods of vegetarianism, usually defeated eventually by convenience and lack of choice when eating out. It's so much cheaper than buying meat. In my early years of having a mortgage we used to make a chicken last nearly all week, eventually boiling up the carcase with veg. It worked fine. Keef has it bang on when he says it is about educating youngsters to budget well. Traditional Italian food contains very little meat and Indian food makes great vegetarian meals. You just need to use your imagination a bit more.