Family of 15 eat for as little as 66p per head for each meal

Emma and Roy Hann, from Dundee, Scotland, have 13 children ranging from the ages of four to 27.

The frugal parents, both 49, have revealed how some of the meals they make for their large family cost as little as 66p per head.

The 15-strong Hann family use cupboard staples and meat from online food retailer MuscleFood to prepare a variety of meals, costing as little as £8 per meal.

Meals included Cajun pasta and fajitas, plus a big family barbecue that fed 40 friends and family members and worked out at just 79p per person.

The couple ditched the traditional weekly supermarket shop around five years ago and say theyre about £200 better each month as a result.

As their brood grew, mum Emma realised that each week they were buying items that they didnt really need, like fancy yoghurts and sugary fruit juice.

Purchasing their meat from Musclefood for around £55, including chicken breasts, steak mince, sausages and diced beef, they also buy £33 worth of vegetables and other essentials.

Advertisement

Advertisement

From the £88 spend, Emma and Roy prepare around 112 portions for their clan.

10 of the children still live at home, with the older kids and their partners regularly popping in for meals.

Café owner Emma said: As our family got bigger, naturally it became more expensive to feed everyone, but doing one big supermarket shop every week was actually driving the cost up even more.

By doing this, youre tempted to throw in deals and special offers that you dont really want or need.

Being able to get everything under one roof is obviously really convenient and works for a lot of families, but by shopping around and being a bit savvier about where we buy certain products from, we managed to save around £50 a week on food.

Emma and Roy now buy meat in bulk once a month and freeze it before going to the local supermarket a few times a week to pick up fresh food and other bits.

They now spend around £200 a week on food to feed themselves and the 10 children that eat at home.

But it doesnt mean munching on basic foods either.

We like to mix meals up and keep things varied, but there are a few go-to meals the whole family enjoys which we eat most weeks, like spaghetti and meatballs, mac and cheese, and lasagne, added Emma.

We also try to do a roast at least fortnightly, but this can be quite expensive when youre cooking for all 13 kids, plus their partners.

Advertisement

Advertisement

What we tend to do now is get some of the older ones whove moved out to bring the mashed potatoes or Yorkshire puddings, so everyone chips in.

Husband Roy, a nurse practitioner, does all the cooking.

I took over all the cooking duties about eight years ago as I enjoyed it so much and at the time, we had three little ones all under the age of four, he said.

Weve always had a cupboard thats pretty much full of different herbs and spices, plus essentials like chopped tomatoes, kidney beans, and chickpeas.

Well nip to the shops for fresh veg every few days, buy big 3kg bags of pasta and rice from the wholesalers, and bulk buy about £150 worth of meat once a month.

Some of the food thats been stretched out include an £85 hamper from MuscleFood which was used to feed the family for a week.

They even enjoyed some steak, which they considered a luxury. There were even some leftovers available for further meals.

With so many mouths to feed and tastes to suit, we tend to make one main meal and then includes lots of different sides, just so that everyone has something that they like continued Emma.

Were lucky as none of our kids are particularly fussy eaters, but its good to provide options anyway.

What are they eating?

Rogan Josh (serves 12)