| Slash Your Grocery Bill (Rev. 3/8) |
| by Mira O'Connell |
|
| Grocery Store Shopping |
| Natural & Organic Food Savings |
| Setting Goals |
|
| No matter where you buy your groceries or how much money you are spending. You can most likely save even more! |
|
| Grocery Store Shopping |
| Sit down with your weekly circulars and plan your shopping. You may find it easier and more economical to alternate stores and just visit the one with the overall best deals that week. Compare what coupons you have, what items are on this weeks Valu Page, what items offer Rebates. Post on the Coupon Swap to get multiple coupons needed for a particular sale item then Stock Up! Only use coupons to buy items you normally use. Save your UPCs from items and receipts. You never know when you will come across a rebate form for items you have already bought. Get a system for organizing your coupons, rebates, etc. This will make your life easier and you will be able to maximize your savings. Many Stores (Target, Walmart..) have an Ad Matching Policy for their competitors. Some stores will Refund you the difference on an item if it goes on sale within 14 days of the purchase. Watch for price inaccuracies at checkout. You would be amazed how often it happens. Don't shop on an empty stomach. Also you will be able to concentrate more on comparisions and will by less convenience food if you leave the kids at home. |
|
Generic vs. Brand Name |
| Give the generic alternative for a brand a taste test. Try not to tell the other members of your family. Many of the generic brands are packed by the same companies as the brand names and just labelled differently. Check ingredients often they are identical. Do the taste test and if no one notices a difference then you have a savings. Of course, there will be some items you just have to buy that trusty name brand for. In that case watch for specials, use coupons & Stock Up! Eventhough Generic brands have lower prices normally. Still compare - Del monte vegetables, Jello, and many other items go on sale regularly and coupons are abundant. |
|
Bulk |
| NEVER, NEVER buy spices in a jar. If you look at the price on the shelf where they list per pound pricing you will flip. Most spices are $35 - $50 per pound. Many stores these days sell bulk spices. If your store does not make a bimonthly trip to your local health food store to buy bulk spices for $10 per pound and less. While you are there check out their entire bulk selection and compare. Cereal is another item that is almost always less expensive when bought in bulk as wel as flour, pasta, rice and other staples so price compare. You can take your own container, just have the front cashier weigh it before you fill it up.
|
| The Little Things Add Up |
- Don't use cooking spray. Buy an oil mister (Misto, Pampered Chief, etc)
- Take your lunch
- Drink Tea, Juice & Kool-Aid instead of Pop
- Buy Concentrate juice - don't pay for water
- Freeze juice for popsicles.
- Make your own baby food
. - Keep snacks in the car to avoid convenience store stops.
|
| Convenience Food |
| Fozen & other prepared foods are very convenient but also very costly. If you enjoy the convenience of frozen meals consider Freezer or Once a Month Cooking. The convenience of frozen food with the cost and taste of homemade food! Also save time & money and have fresher food by preparing your own convenince mixes. |
| Wholesale Clubs |
| Wholesale clubs may present some savings for your family but do not assume everthing is cheaper just because you have to buy alot of it. I found that dairy, meats, & produce were more economical if bought during sales at the grocery store and frozen. Canned goods can be less expensive when the commercial size is bought. If you do freezer cooking the commercial sizes can save you time and money. Individual sizes are generally cheaper to buy at the grocery when on sale. |
| Produce |
| Gardening can be a wonderful past time as well as a great source of food for your family. Even without much room or time you can do windowbox herbs or an indoor tomato plant. Produce is least expensive when bought in it's growing season. Buy large quantities of produce at a good price, run thru your food processor, and freeze in bags. Freeze berries and such whole. You can enjoy out of season fruit in smoothies and other treats year round. Also compare the prices of frozen, canned and fresh produce. |
| Online Shopping |
| There are some serious grocery savings to take advantage of online. Priceline.com has an amazing program. Where you can get up to 50% off retail prices on major brands at your local grocery store. The program is only available in limited areas(NY, NJ, CT, VT, MD,NH, DC, E. PA,W. MA, W. VA, Detroit, Milwaukee & Boston) but they are expanding quickly. It works like a prepaid card. You have a pin number and run the card thru like a debit. It pays your total whatever it may be but you have already paid "your price". You can still use coupons and store loyalty cards. They will credit your card for the savings. Pretty Amazing! This program is not in my area yet so please see site for full details. |
|
| Natural & Organic Food Savings |
| Canned & Non Perishable Items |
| Buy these items online at WholeFoods.com. They have very reasonable prices to begin with and there is usually coupon codes available for this site. Stock Up! WholeFoods.com waves the handling fee if you purchase more than $50. You can also get rebates on your purchase thru several rebate programs. Budget a certain amount for nonperishable items every month or paycheck and buy it all at once online. They will deliver it right to your door! As I said before buy spices and staples in the bulk section of the natural food store. Almost without exception any item sold in the natural food bulk section will be cheaper than it's package counterpart. Natural & Organic coupons are hard to come buy. Contact the manufacturers and many of them will send you a few coupons. |
| Food Buying Groups |
| Join a food buying group and join with others to purchase bulk natural & organic products from a cooperative warehouse. These warehouses are the very same ones that your local health food store buys from. Tremendous savings over retail. Plus meet likeminded families that can serve as a network. |
| Produce |
| If you try to eat all organic you really should consider gardening as past time. As I mentioned before, even without much room you can do windowbox herbs, indoor tomato plants, sprouts,etc. Many urban areas offer gardening cooperatives. Were you rent a small plot for a garden. If there is not one in your area, find someone whose not using their land and start one! Again produce is least expensive when bought in it's growing season. Buy large quantities of produce at a good price, run thru your food processor, and freeze in bags. You can enjoy out of season fruit in smoothies and such year round. Buy produce from a local Farmers Market. Talk to the growers. Some of them might not use pesticides but they have not paid to be certified organic. |
|
| Setting Goals |
Set realistic goals. Goals that you and other family members will and can follow. If your spouse eats out everyday at work. It may be an easier transition to money savings to first have him take frozen dinners and then down the road get to taking lunches or portions from your freezer cooking. If your family orders pizza once a week, maybe cut back to once a month and get a frozen pizza or take and bake pizza the other weeks. Also weigh your sanity with the savings. You may ideally want to have a large garden and bake all of your own bread but you may not have the time for that at this point in your life. Make small steps towards your ultimate goal. Maybe a small garden and bake bread once a month. Any steps you take will be a savings for your family. Which can going towards more fun or getting out of debt.
Track your grocery spending for a few months, set up a realistic budget based on your current spending, and then start trimming back. Some people find it helpful to put the grocery budget in cash in an envelope. When you have used the cash up you have no more grocery money until the next month. Try to get other members of the family involved in the budget process so they have a realistic idea of their spending habits. |
