Save at the Supermarket: 9 Tips
The Secret
So what is the secret to filling your shopping cart while combating high food costs? Following are 9 strategies for you to help you save more while eating healthier.
1. Buy store brands. In many cases, store brand foods are made by the same companies that make major national brands. They are often similar, but less expensive, because they they don't have to bear the cost of slick marketing. However, they may have lower standards of quality, such as more broken pieces of less-than-perfect slices. But taste is often identical. Why not do your own taste tests with a few store brands and see if you can make some acceptable substitutions. You may find you even prefer some store brands for some products.
2. Collect coupons. Coupons can save you a bundle - especially if you store doubles or triples them - but only if you are careful to use them for items you need or would generally buy anyway. Check out computerized coupon "clipping" websites. Also, be sure to get a store savings card; if you forget to bring it, tell the cashier, who will often use a stock card for you or your phone number. According to a poll conducted by Consumer Reports National Research Center for Shop Smart magazine, shoppers who use coupons or store-loyalty cards save more than 10 percent a year on groceries - that's up to $678.00 off the average annual grocery bill.
3. Compare unit prices. Look on the store shelf below the item for how much a product costs per pound or ounce. It allows you to determine if the bigger or smaller package is a better buy. Surprisingly, the biggest item is not always the cheapest. Unit pricing may mislead when it comes to meat and poultry purchases, however, in those cases, it's best to compare cost per serving, not per pound or ounce, because of the extra weight of bone and skin. For example, in-bone meat will give you fewer servings than boneless meat.
4. Limit Time/Trips: Shop with a List Frequent trips to the grocery store may trigger more buying. Shop once a week instead of every few days, and limit the time you spend there; the more time you spend in a store, the more impulse items you are likely to buy. Shopping with a list keeps you organized and cuts down that time spent in the store. And shopping at a familiar store lets you go right to the aisles you need and not provide any opportunity for wandering and the inevitable impulse buys.
5. Scan the scanner. Sale prices are not always updated on the store's computer, so mistakes are not uncommon. Surveys estimate that overall, consumers lose more than two billion dollars to supermarket scanner overcharges. So don't get distracted at the check-out counter; monitor that scanner and double-check your sales receipts.
6. Cut back on convenience. While it is tempting to purchase items already cleaned, cut up or ready to eat, you're paying for those perks. You can save money by cutting your own fruit, peeling your own vegetables, washing your own salad greens, slicing and grating your own cheese and cutting up your own chicken. However, some convenience items like frozen vegetables may still be a good buy at times, because they can be stored longer without spoiling. But it almost goes without saying that frozen dinners and entrees are not bargains.
7. Seek out local produce. By doing this, you'll help to reduce the amount of energy used to transport produce long distances. Support farmer's markets, co-ops and local farms that sell to consumers, which sometimes - but not always- translates into lower prices. You're also at less risk of food poisening. Imported foods have the highest risk of causing food-related illness.
8. Eat more like a vegetarian. You don't have to give up your steaks, chicken, burgers etc. if you don't want to. But if you use more nuts, beans and lentils to extend or substitute for the meat in some of your meals, you'll save on money and eat more healthfully, too.
9. Practice portion control. Super-sizing what you eat is not only costly for your waist, but costly for your wallet, too. Kep meat, poultry, and fish to the recommended three-to-four ounce servings at meals. And use smaller plates and glasses to fool your brain so you'll eat and drink less.
