WE'RE ALL BECOMING

Rising prices have made a world of difference in the way housewives are preparing main meals for their families in Bahrain.

Shoppers say that as the cost of living continues to soar most people are restructuring their shopping baskets to keep their grocery bills down.

Even in Bahrain where the government subsidises essentials and is trying to crack down on rising prices, everyone is feeling the pinch.

The spiralling cost of food continues to be one of the most talked about topics around the coffee tables of the kingdom and many households say they have been compelled to rethink what goes into their shopping trolleys and the style of meals served up on the dinner table.

With news that annual inflation in Bahrain accelerated to 4.4 per cent in October from 3.2 per cent in September, grocery bills are one of the few flexible expenses a family can play around with unlike rent and school fees.

GulfWeekly spoke to a cross section of shoppers of different nationalities living on the island to get their views.

Most agree that they have become smarter shoppers and are spending a great deal of time looking at price tags, studying Shilpa's Shopping List in GulfWeekly and some have started travelling to two or three different supermarkets to buy their groceries while others have switched to cheaper brands to keep their bills down.

Today we feature a multi-national group of women living in Bahrain and have taken a snapshot of their trolleys to find out how their shopping habits have

Nomi Rajan, 44, is from Pakistan and lives in Jasra. She is a budding artist and practitioner of homeopathy. She has three children and has lived in Bahrain for seven years. "I have noticed a marked increase in my grocery bill over the last four months. Initially I thought that maybe I was generally spending too much but on closer inspection realised that my food bills were surpassing my monthly budget.

"As a result I'm trying to become more imaginative with my meals. Since we have a traditional Pakistani lunch daily I try to include more lentils and vegetables rather than meat and poultry. Initially, we had a meat dish daily, now some days of the week we just have a vegetarian meal. Although vegetables are also expensive they are considerably cheaper than meat. Ironically, this has had a two pronged effect - it's probably made our diets healthier and brought my grocery bills within my budget!"

Marokh Shefiee, 43, is a Bahraini housewife living in Isa Town. She has three children. "I have noticed my food costs increasing gradually since last year and it has soared 40 per cent within the past one year. I shop primarily at Lebanon Trade Centre. I have a habit of reviewing my grocery bill after shopping.

"Rice has almost doubled and while previously I bought Tilda Rice, I have now switched to a Maza brand which has also gone up during the course of the year. Initially, I would spend around BD5 on my everyday food items like milk, bread and the rest but now it is not less than BD10. So far I can afford to buy the same quality and brand of food items but if the prices continue to increase the way they are increasing right now I will be compelled to substitute with cheaper ones. I can't imagine how the lower income households are managing their grocery bills."

Jane Marren, 36, is a housewife from the UK and lives in Saar. She has two children and has been living in Bahrain for two years. "My typical grocery basket comprises chicken, beef, potatoes, carrots and peppers which I used to buy alternatively from Jawad, Al Jazira and Alosra Supermarket. I noticed an increase in my grocery bill over the last six months which is why I have now started going to Lulu Hypermarket for certain groceries. I have changed my brand of butter and substituted my favourite Kenco Coffee to Nescafe. I don't buy imported biscuits any more and buy less treats for my children. Since the cost of imported bread has gone up I now buy local bread. I simply won't buy items if I feel they are overpriced or I will check the price at a different supermarket and buy it if it is cheaper there.

"Peppers have gone up by one dinar in the past few months so now I only buy them occasionally. I'm sure putting food on the dinner table is a struggle for people with lower wages. My husband earns a decent salary and even I'm finding it a strain. If the cost of staples goes up considerably then I would have to go for cheaper meat cuts or frozen as opposed to fresh. I would also consider bulk buying then. A lot of prices here are on par with prices in the UK."

Pamela Korbely, 55, is an entrepreneur and lives in Budaiya with her two children. She is from Colarado, USA, and has been on the island for eight years. "During the past six to eight months I started noticing that my shopping bags were getting smaller even though I was spending much more.

"The prices of imported food items are astronomical and I don't buy those anymore and the price of local fruits and vegetables has also increased. A box of local oranges that used to be BD2.30 four months ago has now gone up to BD3.30.

"I eat a steak occasionally but rarely have a rib eye steak any more. Instead, I buy cheaper cuts or a Brazilian roast, but there is not much choice and variation in Bahrain so I cannot pick and choose as much as I would have back home. I'm always trying to lower my grocery bill and feel that I've become a smart shopper as I've become more aware in terms of where to go and what to buy."

Mantana Campana, 36, is a housewife and lives in Saar. She is from Thailand and has two children. She came to Bahrain in 2006. "I buy a lot of fish and meat. Previously I bought Australian steak and meat from New Zealand. Now I have switched to Saudi meat and local lamb. As my husband is Italian we eat a lot of table cheese. Very rarely do I buy imported cheese now. Instead, I buy the local cheese.

"Tomatoes are my main ingredient in Italian cooking which have also gone up. So what I have started doing now is to buy from the street vendors as their prices are considerably cheaper than those of supermarkets.

"Also, I don't stock up anymore and I just buy what I need on a daily basis as that, for me, is a way of keeping my bill in check. I am cooking much less now - just what is enough for one main meal for the family.

"Before I had two or three dishes on the table but now I put one main dish on the table with a side dish. It is just too expensive."