Jim Henderson wrote:
> Total cost:  $1.11 + $0.35 + $0.25 = $1.71 per meal.
> 
> IIRC, a quarter pounder with cheese meal costs around $4 around here.  
> (It's been about 10 years since I ate at a McDonald's).
> 
> There are additional costs to making it yourself, of course - you've got 
> to have equipment, for starters.  Time is also a factor to consider.
> 
> But I'll take the cheaper homemade burger any day over the trash served 
> at McDonald's.
> 
> Jim

There are other up front costs that you missed, that would prevent a
family just teetering on the edge of money problems would not be able to
afford. Cookware is one, storage of the food is probably a bigger one.

Let's say the family actually eat like most people I know, they can
stand the same food for a day or two, but a week of hamburgers would get
on their nerves. Where do they store 5lbs of beef? If they take
advantage of good prices, they need to store the groceries some place.
They need a freezer to store all of that in, and the small fridges they
probably had before kids just won't cut it for storing enough food for a
family of 4 or 5. The obvious cost of a new fridge or a separate deep
freeze, along with the electrical costs, outweigh the hidden savings of
fast food.

Add to that the cost of cookware. I know families who get by with less
cookware then I would have believed possible. 1 or 2 fry pans, a small
pot and a slighter bigger one. To fix burgers like this, they need a
meat grinder at least. How many meals till it breaks even for them? If
they consider eating out at McD as a special once in a while event, how
many weeks or months would it take for them to recoup that cost? Add to
that the cost of a CostCo membership*, and freezer to store bulk food in.

*guessing here. There isn't a CostCo around here. I've heard they are a
membership type store, like SamsClub. The local grocery store charges
more then 3$ lbs for decent beef, Wal-mart charges less but I've never
seen anything there that looked eatable.

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