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Groceries are one of the few flexible items in a family's
budget, but it can sometimes be challenging to find
creative ways to save on regular family food costs.
Following are some simple tips for easy reductions
in grocery expenses:
1) Plan ahead whether you're cooking your meals
ahead of time to store in the freezer, or just planning
your menu and shopping lists in advance.
2) Set your grocery budget and then make sure your
menus and grocery lists fit your budget.
3) Plan your meals around items you already have on
hand, and around the sales flyers from your local grocery
stores.
4) Shop with cash. This is a surprisingly effective means
of staying on budget. Writing a check somehow seems
less concrete than paying cash.
5) Keep a running total of how much you're spending at
the store. If you find that you're about to spend more than
you had budgetted for that trip, put items back and re-shop
for better bargains.
6) Keep a Price Diary. List all regularly purchased items
(food, toiletries, paper products, etc.) in a small notebook
small enough to slip into your purse or pocket when you go
shopping. When you're browsing through store advertisements
or doing your actual shopping, write down (in pencil!) the
lowest price you see for each item listed in your Price Diary
(change the prices when you see lower prices than you've
already written in the notebook). This way you'll know for
sure if a sale price is low enough to make it worth stocking
up.
7) A simple rule of thumb when you're shopping is: "look
high, look low." Stores often place the most expensive
items at eye level and all the generic and store brands
on the top and bottom of shelves.
8) Stores often place their advertised specials at the end
of aisles. The advertised special might be a good buy,
but will often be displayed with non-sale items to entice
you into impulse purchases.
9) Sometimes a store will offer what's known as Loss
Leaders -- those items the store will sell so cheaply,
they'll actually take a loss on each sale. They're hoping
to entice new customers into the store who will then
purchase other items in addition to the sale item. You
need to hold strong against impulse purchases in these
situations.
10) Only use coupons for those items and brands that
you would normally purchase. Always check the
expiration date on your coupons.
11) Some stores offer double coupons -- check with
your favorite store and see if they do. Some stores
will even accept competitor's coupons.
12) Hand your coupons to the cashier before they
start to ring up your order so you don't forget later.
13) Stock up on frequently used items when they
go on sale (canned goods, toilet paper, shampoo,
etc.).
14) Natural food co-ops are becoming quite common.
This can be a great way to purchase organic fruits
and vegetables, whole grains and other usually
expensive items at competitive prices.
15) Only bulk buy those items you know you'll use
before they go bad. Stockpiling toilet paper is a good
idea, but bananas might be another story (unless you
plan on baking with them or freezing the pulp for use
in recipes later).
16) Watch for sales on ground meats. Divide the meat
into one pound batches and freeze in individual zip-top
freezer bags.
17) If you have extra freezer space, stock up on bakery
and dessert items from bakery outlet stores.
18) One simple approach to meal planning is setting a
price goal for each meal. For example: Breakfast = $0.50
per person, Dinner = $3 - $4 total.
19) Don't shop when you're hungry. You're more liable to
make impulse buys when your stomach's rumbling.
20) Check store entrances or bulletin boards for special
flyers, and don't forget to look in local newspapers for
additional coupons
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