What my wife and I have always found is that if we buy fresh ingredients and try to cook from them, they always come in such large quantities that we can never use them all before they go bad, so we end up wasting so much we pay more than for eating out anyway. Home cooking in bulk is reasonable for a family of four, maybe, but not so practical for just one or two people.

In the US, at least, there are some services that are trying to pack and deliver fresh ingredients for single meals, but where I live is so hot that they often go bad on the way.