Trimming the Fat From Your Grocery Bill
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Regardless of your family’s size, cutting down on food spending can seem daunting: after all, we all need to eat. When preparing a budget, the food allotment should usually equal about 10% of total income, adjusted to fit the quantity of people being fed. Aside from being selective where you shop -no frills is always kinder to your budget- what else can you do? To cuts costs in the supermarket, try….
1. Going veggie. Good quality meat doesn’t run cheap and who wants to eat nothing but hotdogs. Making the majority of your meals plant and whole-grain based leads to a significant cut in your grocery bill. For those carnivores that can’t contemplate doing without, consider buying TVP (a veggie meat-like substitute) or upping the mushrooms, which can add a meaty flavour and texture.
2. Clipping coupons or shopping specials! Manufacturer’s coupons, coupled with lost leaders can be a great way to save. Grocery stores in certain geographic regions can be highly competitive, offering double or triple coupons days, while other areas are more dependant on advertised specials. Remember that a sale price has value only if it’s something you would normally buy and use.
3. Meal Plan! The annoying adage ‘If you fail to plan, plan to fail’ definitely is true with keeping to a food budget. The best way to keep on track and eliminate fast food splurges is to have a weekly plan detailing what will be made and when. Meal plans take a little time to create but save more in the long run and make creating quick and healthy meals a snap.
4. Almost but not quite. Check the produce, bakery, meat and dairy departments for items that have almost expired, but are still usable. Meat products can be discounted up to 75% if bought close to the expiry date, perfect for a big batch of chili. A massive bunch of over-ripe bananas can be bought for next to nothing. Too mushy for eating? Banana bread and muffins are a cinch to make and if frozen, can last for months. The trick with buying food on the fringe is to buy what you can use immediately.
5. Buy In Bulk. For items that are non-perishable and will never go out of style (think toilet paper), buying bulk can be the way to go. Always weight the cost and value of the product being purchased and make sure you consider the practicality (a 2 kg can of tuna may be perfect for a family reunion but is overkill for the kids’ lunch)
Eating in or out, the most important thing is to remain conscious about what you want to spend and why. Whether to eliminate debt, live more simply or save for a vacation, frugal feeding is easiest to commit to when we remember why it is important to us.
A writer who wants to master the art of saving her pennies, Lucy knows and practices many ways of reducing, reusing and recycling items in the pursuit of frugality as well as happiness. For more tips as well as talk, go to http://apennysaved.today.com/
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