SpicesInc.com - 17 Tips to Save Money at the Grocery Store

17 Tips to Save Money at the Grocery Store

17 Tips to Save Money at the Grocery Store

Ok you’ve made the decision to go organic but it is a bit more expensive than the non-organic version – but providing better health for your family is worth it isn’t it? Recent research shows that 88% of consumers reported buying the same (52%) or more (36%) organics than they did 6 months ago. But with the recent rising cost of grocery prices it is making it harder and harder to provide the best organic food for your family without your weekly grocery budget getting completely obliterated. Well there are some helpful tips to keep as much green as possible in your wallet when you have left the grocery store. This isn’t easy but there are several major steps to take – what you do before you go to the grocery store, what you do once you are in it and make one extra stop at the local farmer’s market.

Before you go to the store

Plan ahead. Go through your recipes and plan a week’s worth of meals ahead of time and then make a grocery list. This does two things it keeps you from having to make a return trip to the store (in case you forgot something) and it keeps you from making impulse buys. This can be a bit time consuming but well worth the effort.

Plan around coupons and specials. See what is on sale or what you have coupons for and double check your recipe books – can you plan a meal on the cheap using these sale items? You can also buy some of these things in bulk – i.e. meat and freeze them for a later meal.

Don’t buy it just because you have a coupon. Only buy things that make sense with coupons. If you are buying that item that you wouldn’t normally go anywhere near for a 20% savings – but it immediately goes to the back of your pantry not to be seen again – how much did you really save?

What’s in the trash? Monitor what are you tossing – is it leftovers that should have been consumed or did you buy too much of something and it went bad. Again check your fridge and pantry before you go shopping you might be able to plan a meal around items in the fridge or pantry that are early candidates for next week’s trash.

Avoid meal disasters. If you are planning a meal that you haven’t made before, double check the recipe for the proper list of ingredients and how to prepare. This will prevent you from purchasing too much of something or preparing it incorrectly. This can be very costly.

Beware of snacks. Again plan ahead – if you are on a diet research has shown that you should allow yourself a cheat meal or two each week and you should also allow yourself a few sinful snacks (a rule of thumb is 10% of your meals and snacks can be a bit off diet) – but plan ahead and only purchase snacks and cheat foods for these specific times. This will also help you stay on your diet targets. You absolutely do not want more of these snacks in the house than absolutely necessary – if these are in the house they will get consumed in a moment of weakness.

Now it is almost time to actually head to the store – but don’t go when you are hungry. Eat before you grocery shop and if you are taking the kids – definitely make sure that they are fed as well.

At the store

Go small. Are you trying a new product for the first time? Go for the smallest size that way if your family doesn’t like it you are not tossing it (or too much of it ) in the trash.

When does it expire? Check expiration dates as they don’t always properly rotate items at the store and dairy products and meat are very costly to waste if you pick one with a short expiration date. Some box or baking items are going to last a while in your kitchen so you want to watch out for these as well. You don’t want to have to toss something before it’s time.

Stock up on the staples. You know what these items are and they may even be worth an extra trip to your local Sam’s Club or Costco to get these. Many local grocery stores are now offering these larger bulk items in limited quantities as well. But again only on the staples – because no matter what it is going to take a long time to get through that 10 lb. jar of mayonnaise.

Go for the store brand. These offer tremendous savings and many times come from the same manufacture/ supplier as the name brand stuff. Also remember that the national brands have prime shelf positioning and tend to be in the middle/primary eye sight levels with the cheaper alternatives being placed in the lower or higher (less visible) positions.

Avoid pre-prepared foods. Many folks have substituted eating out with instead purchasing these premade portions in the warm food section of the store and you certainly “pay” for the convenience of a fully cooked meal (with a high premium price) or even to pick up some fish or meat that has already been seasoned (still way more expensive than seasoning yourself). And don’t buy the oatmeal in a 10-pack box buy the good old fashioned instant oatmeal container that will give you three – four times the amount of the 10-pack size and save you money at the same time.

Are you a member of your store’s frequent shopper/club program? If you’re not you should be. Many time what looks like a good price is only available to these preferred customers (the non-member price is in small print and much more expensive) you can also get additional savings by being in these plans (i.e. save 10% on a future purchase if you spend $xx in a 3-month period) and some grocery stores even give you a discount on gas.

Do you really need that bottle water? Did you know that some of the biggest water suppliers (Coke, Pepsi, etc) actually use tap water to fill up their bottle water? So you are paying a premium on water and the plastic bottles then get tossed into the earth and you get to “pay” several times over for the convenience. If your tap water has an off taste buy a filter (instead of using plastic water bottles) it will pay for itself very quickly.

Don’t shop at checkout. The grocery stores try to entice you with everything from tabloid trash to overpriced sweets. When you get to the checkout that’s what you’re supposed to do – you’re done shopping.

Paper or plastic? Neither – bring your own canvas bag and you will save in the long run – less waste going into landfills. And more and more cities across the country are actually banning the use of plastic bags in the stores. Every little bit helps.
Make one extra stop

Support your local farmer’s market. Did you know that the average vegetable or fruit travels more than 1,500 miles to get to your local grocery store? By supporting local farmers you are not only keeping dollars in your community, you are keeping the farmer in business and you’re getting a better tasting and more nutrient filled piece of fruit or vegetable. Oh and did we mention that it is also cheaper? Check out the article Local Farms and Farmer's Markets more info and how to locate some of these hidden gems if you don’t already know where to find one.
So depending on the size of your family these tips will all add up and you could be keeping several thousand of dollars in your bank account for some other crazy expense that also keeps going up and up.