What is your strategy for dealing with rising food prices? (deals, expensive)
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Lots of good ideas in this thread, but personally I prefer to shop without a list/plan because I don't know what's going to be a good deal until I go in. If you plan what you're going to make that week and the ingredients are overpriced then what do you do?
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That is the whole point of planning weekly menu around the sale flyer. If something pops up which is a good sale and it wasn't on the flyer then it is a nice surprize. But I sit with the wednesday flyer and my list of meals and grocery list. takes a few extra minutes but it's a good habit to get into.
its all relative- stop going out to eat ,,,stop with buying uneeded coffee's , cut the alcohol, tobacco, and useless entertainment
i buy in bulk, freeze cheap meats,,,,i buy mark downs,,,, i buy the whole pieces of primals and cut myself,,
i buy the loss leaders, cherry pick the specials,,i stopped buying organics and going to farmers markets,,,half of this hype isnt what we think it is..
Who doesn't need coffee? Not this gal..... Sometimes, being frugal can only go so far
"don't use manufacturer coupons because most are for processed foods I wouldn't normally buy" thank you. I thought I was the only person who thinks that most coupons (clipped from sunday paper) are for new introductions and for things I never buy anyway. How is that saving us money?
If you have Aldi, shop there, cheapest prices around. AND they also carry alcohol which is very cheap and surprisingly good.
Also: if you can bake anything yourself, do it.
Get a freezer, we do not have one (small house, no place to put it and frequenty power outages in our area) but if we did I could save a boatload of money by stocking up.
If you like tomatoes, grow your own, seriously, tomatoes are very easy to grow and just one plant should get you a many tomatoes. Mine do well just in a patio pot.
In our house, coffee is a MUST. I also drink tea, and have to use a brand-name. I have tried other cheap teas and they taste awful.
Also, shop the ethnic food aisles in the stores. The Mexican, italian, indian, polish sections, etc. all have great selections at very cheap prices. Because you are not paying for advertising, you generally get more in the package at a cheaper cost. Esp. the pasta. I can regularly get a huge bag of mfg. In Italy pasta for 99 cents. AND its good. Cheap pasta tastes bland.
That is the whole point of planning weekly menu around the sale flyer. If something pops up which is a good sale and it wasn't on the flyer then it is a nice surprize. But I sit with the wednesday flyer and my list of meals and grocery list. takes a few extra minutes but it's a good habit to get into.
That makes sense, but I usually shop at Costco and Meijer and I don't think they have weekly flyers, but I could be mistaken.
I don't skimp on food I just do away with unnecessary things like $400 smart phones with $150+plans every month. All that money saved buys me some real tasty food
Who doesn't need coffee? Not this gal..... Sometimes, being frugal can only go so far
now marylee, i know some people that spend 6-8 dollars a day just on coffe, 2 a day of hi test triple latte' cappicino, dark roast with whipped cream
its funny how self-indulgent money is different than grocery money...... its like someone complaning about a grocery item that went up by 10 cents, but a few hours later that same person is buying an 8 dollar drink in a restaurant..
but maybe they can afford that 8 dollar drink because they are frugal in other areas,,yeah, thats gotta be it..
Not only food — also drug store items. I swear the cost of toothpaste has doubled in ten years. Paper products are so expensive you'd think they were made of refined oil.
I like the Up and Up brands Target sells. I find them to be quite similar to brand-name products I prefer for much less. I buy in the off-season and in bulk. I use coupons and read the supermarket ads to comparison shop. I try to keep a neat pantry and linen closet so I can see what I have at hand and when I am low on something I keep an eye out for it on sale somewhere. I buy things online when I can get free shipping. And I always do a Google search for discounts before I place my order. There is almost always some discount one can apply to an online purchase for any company except Amazon.
no smart phone here except one from DH's company
$7.00 emergency use only phone for me but I never know where it is so...
basic cable and free for 90 days with Showtime, netflix is a must have
no coffee and I'm probably the only person in the world who has never set foot in a starbucks,
no liquor except a bottle of red or white wine for cooking which lasts forever- usually less than $10 on sale
I can count on one hand I've been in a McDonalds, Burger King
If I'm gonna eat on the road I want to be reasonably sure my food is healthy and safely prepared
few if any paper products, have cloth napkins, washcloths at kitchen sink and loads of kitchen towels
but I do buy expensive -not at the grocery store- pet food. I would rather buy premium pet food to keep them healthy than have huge vet bills
I don't skimp on food I just do away with unnecessary things like $400 smart phones with $150+plans every month. All that money saved buys me some real tasty food
I’m with you on this.
I may cut out some pure decadent or luxury food items, but I'm not going to get so worked up over rising food cost when there are hundreds of other non-essential budget items I can tweak.
Overall, my strategy is to make sure my financial compensation keeps pace with rising essential budget items. Everything is going up so I make sure my pay keeps going up.
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