El Reg assembles mighty Quid-A-Day Nosh Posse

Quid-a-Day posse goes international with US entrant

That's the veterans' lines of attack summarised, but what of our brave Nosh Posse newcomers? Nathan Dennis sent an email as economical as his diet next week, briefly stating his "general plan is to aim for some variety so its not the same meal three times per day".

He added: "Fibrous bulk and lots of water plus whatever I can squeeze out of the Tesco value range. We also have a local farm shop for cheap and wholesome veg. The missus did suggest the Tesco value lager at 25p a can but I have standards!"

Quite right. Brit expat Richard Jacob, meanwhile, will be hitting the supermarkets in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where he's based with his wife and two kids under the age of 12.

When we asked Richard a couple of weeks back to outline his cunning survival plan, he said: "As we are taking this challenge in the US the budget is $1.50 per person per day. I think a family of four is going to be at a big advantage as the budget will be $30 for five days rather than $7.50 for one person. Another advantage is that the dollar buys more food than the equivalent pounds or pence.

"Food is cheaper in America due to the large-scale industrialization of agriculture and a dollar has the equivalent purchasing power of a UK pound. One thing we are not going to do is any couponing. I’ve read reports where people start with $30 for a month and end donating food to the foodbank. I think it would be unfair to the other people taking the challenge."

He continued: "There are a lot of working poor in America and it is possible to feed a family of four on $100 or less per week. We won’t be able to afford much processed food or to eat out as that will easily bring you up to $5 per person per day. The neighborhood where I live is fairly upmarket but we are next to one of the poorest neighborhoods in the region and this gives me access to local supermarkets that specialize in cutprice goods.

"I have been scoping out the local supermarkets and started to put in a plan together. We like a bit of variety in our diet and we will probably do a couple of days with a Mexican or Asian theme. We need to make enough food in the evening to cover lunch for the next day. The local supermarket has chickens and some cuts of pork for one dollar a pound so the meat requirement for the kids can easily be met.

"I'm also going to try baking bread, making cheese and yogurt as the raw ingredients are cheaper than the finished products and it's all pretty easy to do. The yogurt with a spoonful of jam will be a good after school snack. We will use a pressure cooker to cook up pulses and beans and save a lot of time. Getting enough fresh veg and fruit is going to difficult and I hope to pick a salad of wild leaves from the garden for at least one meal."

Richard concluded: "The danger points beyond running out of food is that the kids can eat all the food from one sitting so that there is nothing left for the lunch next day. Also we need to buy enough cheap fruit to cover the school lunches. At the moment I'm quietly confident but it could all go horribly wrong."

Yes it could, and yesterday Richard reported: "Last time I wrote I was very happy because I realized we could pick up meat for about a dollar a pound. I've done some more hunting round the supermarket and made a bad discovery. Though I can get cheap meat it’s hard to get fresh cheap fruit and vegetables.* I've been over confident and it looks like we’re going to have to use quite a bit of canned veg.

"The only fresh veg I can find below a dollar a pound are carrots, cabbage, beetroot and onions. I was quite surprised I was expecting more things to be available. Fresh fruits can be a pain, the cheapest I could find was a five pound bag of apples for three dollars. It’s a bargain but when the budget is so small every cent is going to count."

With some serious bargain-hunting in prospect, the Jacob family has prepared a provisional spreadsheet demonstrating how tight it's going to be (click on the image for the full-fat version):