Woman outraged after paying over $24 for ingredients to make a basic cheese sandwich

Would you pay over $24 for this? The reality of the cost of living crisis hit this Aussie shopper hard at the checkout. 

Families are being hit hard by the current cost of living crisis - and not even a basic cheese and ham sandwich for dinner is going to relieve you of that financial burden, apparently. 

A Melbourne woman was left shocked after a recent trip to her local supermarket to pick up a few items to make a basic meal at home. 

Miss Madeleine took to X (formerly known as Twitter) to share the cost of a loaf of bread, a block of cheese and some packet ham. A pretty cheap trip, one would think. Oh, but not in November 2023!

The quick shop set her back a total of $24.80 - and understandably, she was mortified. 

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How much would you pay for these 3 ingredients? Image: X

Cost of living in Australia

The woman shared an image of the items with the caption: "Cost of living in Australia" before breaking down exactly what she purchased. 

• 1 x loaf of bread
• 1 x ham (10 slices)
• 1 x cheese 500g

"Cost $24.80!! Woolworths supermarket."

Sadly, this is the reality many Australians are facing right now, no matter what supermarket you visit to do your groceries. 

And Miss Madeleine's post had many relating to the feel of the checkout sting. 

"I believe it. Cheese and butter have gone through the roof," one person commented. 

"What she showed was right for where I live. You pay more in cities outside metro areas," another added. 

Families are being hit hard at the checkout

The current cost of the 500g block of cheese the Melbourne local purchased is $8.50. It's a fair chunk for a basic ingredient, and it's not the first time a shopper has hit social media to rage about the cost. 

In October, a woman was shocked to discover a 1kg block of Bega cheese would set her back $16.80. 

The mum took to the Mums on a Budget Facebook group to share a photo of the block with the grim price tag. 

"I didn't know whether to laugh or cry," she captioned the post. 

Fellow shoppers agreed that a basic supermarket trip was now getting ridiculous for families, with some even joking about having to take out a second mortgage just to feed the family something simple.  

RELATED: Shoppers outraged over the rising cost of milk

How to save money on your next supermarket trip

A spokesperson from Woolworths told Kidspot that they understand the financial strain many Australians are experiencing, and to help, have offered the option of shopping for home brands to get through the months when things are particularly tight. 

"One way to save is to shop our own brands that provide great value and don't compromise on quality or taste," the statement reads. 

Another good idea is to be open with what you're buying each week, so you can chase the weekly specials. 

"We want customers to spend less with us and that’s why we have more than 6000 weekly specials, more than 3000 products on our Low Price program, dropped the price of more than a 150 popular products for Christmas and introduced Member Pricing."

Originally published as Woman outraged after paying over $24 for ingredients to make a basic cheese sandwich