How to Save $400 a Month on Groceries

[Joanne98]

Grocery shopping is like playing the slots in Vegas.

Last week I won, saving $25 by planning ahead and using coupons. Other weeks, the house wins -- I forget my list, miss the store circular, find out my coupons have expired -- and the register drawer devours my cash with a malevolent snap. Gotcha!

Saving Takes Time

Herb Sorensen, head of the Oregon-based consulting firm Sorensen Associates, has spent four decades tracking the grocery business. He says that there are two approaches to pricing: Everyday low prices à la Wal-Mart, and high-low prices featuring capricious weekly specials.

"High-low is a hellish way to run a store -- it's very inefficient," Sorensen says. "But a consumer who wants to invest the time and effort can make out like a bandit by buying on the low side."

The trick is to be a sophisticate -- catch the product at its cheapest price, buy it with a coupon, and stock up. Problem is, few people have the time to track when toilet paper hits bottom (no pun intended) or spend hours snipping coupons. The solution: Two fast-growing websites that do some of the legwork for you, and another that offers low prices and free shipping.

Playing the Grocery Game

I asked Californian Teri Gault, founder of The Grocery Game, if you can feed a family of four on $100 a week. "Absolutely," she replies, "when you know how to play the game."

Her site tracks pricing on 10,000 items in 126 supermarkets and drug chains nationwide. Subscribers pay $10 every eight weeks for a list of local deals and unadvertised specials from one store ($5 for each additional store). The site has 100,000 members.

"Teri's List" matches manufacturer's coupons with weekly specials and unadvertised deals, and is color-coded: green for items that are free when purchased with a coupon; blue for goods that have hit bottom and should be stocked; and black for products that represent a good deal but haven't quite hit bottom.

The Grocery Game provides printable coupons and tells you where to find others in your Sunday newspaper circulars. The key is to save the inserts and label them with the date -- then pull out the ones you need (provided in Teri's List).

A Gamer's Tale

Grocery Game subscriber Wendy Burger, a Maryland freelance writer and mother of three, cut her grocery bill by 40 to 50 percent, and now spends roughly $500 a month. She pays about $98 a year for the weekly list on her grocery store and drug chain, but partly offset the cost by dropping her warehouse club membership.

"When I first started, I spent a lot more time planning because I had to figure out the coupon thing," says Burger, who surfs myClipper.com to get multiple copies of a single coupon. For instance, she paid a 50-cent "handling fee" to buy 30 coupons for $1 off organic milk, saving $30 over the course of three months.

"It's not for everyone," Burger says, adding that it's somewhat counterintuitive to buy cheap, stock up, and plan meals based on what's in the cupboard. "You have to be willing to get the coupons, and be careful to stockpile things you use a lot but that don't go bad," she adds. Burger keeps her stash in a bookcase and a separate freezer. (See my blog for a dietician's advice on products that freeze best.)

The Mother of All Coupon Clippers

Stephanie Nelson, an Atlanta mother of two, started The Coupon Mom seven years ago to teach people how to get cheap grocery items to donate to charity. The site has grown threefold since last December, and now has 450,000 members.

http://finance.yahoo.com/expert/article/moneyhappy/86082

[Vinca]

1. Someone on DU posted an online coupon site that has some good deals.

I've been using it regularly. Here it is -
http://www.thecouponclippers.com/

[HCE SuiGeneris]

2. Wendy Burger

I bet she's a square...

[corkhead]

14. I wonder if she's single

:9

[HCE SuiGeneris]

20. I heard she is a fresh one.

[BlooInBloo]

3. I've heard of people who are *that* into it. I think it's AWESOME!

[central scrutinizer]

12. Unless they are in front of you in the checkout line

I was in line behind two stereotypical little old ladies the other day and they were arguing about which coupons to use and then each pulled out their coin purses and then argued about who was going to pay with exact change. But if I was on a fixed income I would be doing the same thing.

[kestrel91316]

4. They basically don't HAVE coupons for anything I buy.

Such as flour, sugar, cooking oil, produce, plain meats, eggs - basically all the UNPROCESSED stuff that constitutes 95% of my diet.

All I can do to cut costs is go back to buying staples in bulk at Smart & Final, snd then settle for crappy quality or imports...........sigh.

[supernova]

6. Do you have a farmers' market nearby?

That helps some. Though it isn't much of an option in the winter.

I'm like you. I dont' do coupons because they don't offer discounts on the stuff I use. And I'd rather get cleaning products, another budget buster, at the dollar store or make my own.

[kestrel91316]

11. Our farmer's markets are usually more expensive than the grocery stores.

I may have to trek over to the ethnic markets more - they are always cheaper than the rich white folk stores, but then there is the cost of gas in stop-and-go traffic to get there......

I am using up my cleaning "products" and going with all homemade (except for dish soap and laundry detergent, though I do my HANDwashing in my homemade laundry soap).

Anybody know a good substitute for commercial mouthwash? Could I just rinse out with peroxide? I don't want to purchase "made" mouthwash anymore and have about 3 days' worth left.......

[lynnertic]

21. Homemade mouthwash recipes

Make your own mouthwash. http://www.mothernature.com/library/bookshelf/books/47/127.cfm
For a homemade mouthwash, a half-and-half mixture of 3 percent hydrogen peroxide and water will do the trick, says Roger P. Levin, D.D.S., of Baltimore, Maryland, president of the Baltimore Academy of General Dentistry.

------------

Adapted from Better Basics for the Home by Annie Berthold-Bond (Three Rivers Press, 1999).

These delightful mouthwashes will help to eliminate bad breath and promote overall mouth and gum health.

LEMON SAGE BRANDY

This takes about 15 minutes to prepare, and two weeks to infuse. The infused brandy will keep indefinitely, in a glass jar with a screw top.

INGREDIENTS
1 cup brandy infused with sage, thyme, and myrrh powder
1 cup distilled water
1 teaspoon lemon juice

1. To make the infusion, place 1 teaspoon each dried sage, thyme, and myrrh powder in one cup brandy. Cover tightly and let set for 2 weeks.

2. Strain, add the water, and shake to blend.

3. Pour a few tablespoons into a glass, and add the lemon juice. Swirl to blend, swish around the mouth, and spit.

Makes 2 cups.

BASIC ALCOHOL FREE HERBAL MOUTHWASH FORMULA

Make this strong antibacterial infusion using antiseptic plant materials such as cloves, rosemary, and myrrh to keep your breath fresh and your mouth healthy. Infuse the herbs overnight and it’s ready to use by morning.

INGREDIENTS

1 ounce cloves or powdered myrrh OR 2 to 4 ounces goldenseal or rosemary
2 cups boiling water

1. Place the plant materials in a pint mason jar and cover with the boiling water.

2. Let steep overnight, then strain.

3. Swish around in the mouth and then spit out.

http://www.care2.com/greenliving/make-your-own-mouthwash.html

[kestrel91316]

37. Thx. I will try the peroxide and then maybe the cloves, and compare.

I don't think the brandy one would do what with the soaring price of alcohol, lol.

[crikkett]

18. kitchen garden??

I know you can't grow your own sugar etc. but iirc you live in S. California and so you should be able to do the 'victory garden' thing, which would help you afford the rest.

OBTW about growing sugar... I grew stevia in my yard for a few years with great success. I found it was only useful for sweetening tea, though.

[kestrel91316]

38. Uh, I'm in an apartment now with a balcony on the north side.

My balcony garden is a complete wash so far, not enough sun.

I had a garden for many years at the local community garden center. They probably have a 5 year waiting list these days. And it gets SO HOT here anymore, growing anything at all is iffy.

[pink-o]

22. Yeah, I've noticed that too!

I live on fruits, veg, make my own salad dressing from mustard, tofu, balsamic vinegar and silk--none of which I've ever seen a grocery coupon for.

I buy Organic milk and yoghurt too--no coupons there!

However...here's what I have done. It's summer now, and I live in California, so I go to the Farmer's Market every 2 weeks at Embarcadero for fresh stuff. Also, I bought a Food Saver, the best purchase ever if one wants to buy produce in bulk. It doesn't last for a month or anything, but I can chop up a week's worth of fruit salad for lunch every day at work. It can also be used to bag, seal and freeze food. So you can buy those big cartons of strawberries and blueberries at the height of the season, freeze them and eat them in the winter. Not ideal, but better than buying off-season from South America in January.

It's obvious that The System makes fake food cheap to keep poor people sick and malnourished. If you buy healthy, you have to console yourself with the idea that even though you're paying more now, you won't be buying drugs from Big Pharma when you're a senior living on a fixed income--far more expensive than cantaloupe!

Prevention, anti-oxidants and exercise will keep most of those pills at bay!

[kestrel91316]

39. Rather than chance it with the risk of power failures and losing a freezer full

of goodies, I need to start canning again. Ick - apartment with no central AC, no cross ventilation, and the prospect of 115+ temps in the summer. Canning can be quite the experience here.........

But I will haved to pay those damned high retail prices on anything I can. Damn.

[Vinca]

44. We just started making our own yogurt. I had no idea it was so easy.

We eat lots of it and this saves us about $10 a week. (Bring milk just to the boiling point, cool to 120, pour into a sterilized jar, add a heaping tablespoon of yogurt and stir with a sterilized spoon or shake a little after you put the top on, put in a little picnic cooler surrounded by hot water from the tap, 12 hours later you've got yogurt.)

[Dorian Gray]

31. Yeah...

if you shop the perimeters, it's hard to get coupons. But, I do find them for some of my purchases. (smart balance/eggs or egg beaters/milk/yoghurt.)

I'm getting better at shopping as I need items three times a week rather than once a week or every other week. I keep more fresh produce in the house and use everything. In the long run, I'm saving money this way.

[kestrel91316]

41. I made homemade granola this weekend. Bought ingredients

at Smart&Final, so saved a little there. Storebought granola is a TOTAL RIPOFF.

rolled oats, wheat germ, sesame seeds, pecans, coconut, raisins, canola oil, molasses, homemade brown sugar...........not bad, and VERY healthy. Heated the apartment up, but the AC was on already so it didn't make much difference.

I have to go to Target TONIGHT to buy a "baby gate" to put across the front doorway so I can open that up when I come home from work for some desperately needed cross ventilation. Need to keep the cat IN, so it could be interesting - he jumps well.

[IDemo]

5. find a "day-old" bread store

I can buy a good quality fresh loaf of bread (with an expiration date a week or more out) for $1.05 here that would cost a minimum of $3.00 in the grocery store. It isn't 'day old' or expired bread, but a lot of people are probably put off by the term and shouldn't be. I'm lucky to have a shop right on my normal route to the grocery store.

[here_is_to_hope]

15. Let me add that you should hit these Day-Old stores

later in the day, in my area, after 3 pm. They seem to have more selection and just more after returns come in from the day.
Our local store runs crazy sales on Monday afternoons!

[IDemo]

30. I generally go around 10 to 11:00AM and the shelves are fully stocked

It probably varies from location to location.

[sam sarrha]

7. i eat basic foods, buy in bulk on sale, 15 lbs fancy rice $12 asian store, beans 10 lbs 50 cents lb

buy what else is cheap, a lot if real cheap, preserve, freeze. things not normally freezable can be frozen in water in a zip lock bag

hard times here.. i injured my hand in Oct 07, not back to work yet, it will be amputated as soon as i get rehired and re qualify for temp disability.. which i have lost and my insurance, in the mean time i have to deal with the pain.

[grasswire]

13. I am sorry to hear of your trouble.

Does your Canadian health care not cover your medical costs?

It must be fearsome to anticipate losing a hand. I'm so sorry.

Peace.

[sam sarrha]

8. the joy of cooking book is the best fundamental bulk book, saves a lot of money wasted on processed

food, very informative on how to deal with each food group

[Indenturedebtor]

10. Yeah buying processed food is what kills you

And all that soda and blue yogurt and crap does you in as well.

Another thing is that people buy a lot of stuff that goes bad. We'll buy say one big tub of yoghurt and that will be breakfast for a week. We don't have as many daily choices around the house but we throw away very little food.

[sam sarrha]

45. i make my own yogurt a gallon at a time, eat a mixture of flax meal/oat bran with every meal, and do

a 2 to 3 week master cleanser fast once or twice a year for the last 30 years

[Indenturedebtor]

9. The wife and I eat dinner for about $7 a night

And often we have leftovers that feed us the next night. Now we're not huge people - we're both about 5'10" and not overweight, but we eat healthy portions.

I buy meat when it's at a good price and freeze it. My freezer is almost entirely full of meat.

We eat usually one portion of meat and 2 portions of fresh vegetables that she gets from the farmers market every sunday. Other than that we eat canned veggies. We eat spaghetti twice a week usually. And we normally only have carbs for lunch in the form of sandwiches.

The key is to make everything from scratch. Flour, eggs, milk, butter, tomatoes, onions - that's all you need to make about 400 things, and if you buy your tomatoes canned all of these things are rediculously cheap! Our food bill is a very small part of our budget and we eat very well.

[Fireweed247]

27. "The key is to make everything from scratch. Flour, eggs, milk, butter, tomatoes, onions"

I'm with ya! I don't really eat anything that has coupons(maybe the dog/cat's food) but I buy everything bulk from Costco and make everything from scratch. It is amazing what can be made from a 50lb bag of wheat flour. With a giant can of tomato paste and some spices a person can make ketchup, pasta sauce, tomato soup, salsa, enchilada sauce etc.

[Indenturedebtor]

28. Yes Tomatoes and Onions are shockingly versatile

And we don't even eat in restaurants almost ever anymore. The food in restaurants is usually flavorless high fat crap.

[mdmc]

16. ALDIS!

I can't buy brand names any more!

[Lars39]

23. I caught strawberries there yesterday for 99 cents/lb container.

Been capping like crazy, wishing I'd bought more than a flat of 'em. :)

[mdmc]

25. I bought some crappy cherries there

hit and miss I guess...:)

[PuraVidaDreamin]

17. With a gluten/wheat allergy - I can't use most coupons

And don't buy chemical cleaners- use vinegar, baking soda

Buy allergen free laundry detergent, and glycerine soap

Gluten free food costs a bundle-
gluten free pasta runs about 4 bucks for 12 ounces.

[starroute]

19. Dollar stores, warehouse outlets, discount groceries

All those places have at least several aisles of packaged goods at bargain prices, and the ones that are more food-oriented also have refrigerator and freezer cases. For example, most of the meat we buy comes from grocery stock that has been frozen when it got up to its sell-by date and sent to those places.

One of the neatest things about the discount stores is that familiar brands are only slightly cheaper than at the supermarket -- if at all -- but the gourmet and organic items are often much cheaper, because they don't have the same name recognition. As a result, I was breakfasting all winter on Uncle Sam's Cereal, which is $3.50 in the market but was two boxes for a dollar at the discount place.

[fed-up]

24. Quit supporting factory farms & corporate grocers-don't buy processed crap-won't need coupons! nt

[Indenturedebtor]

29. Exactly! Make your own food people... it's cheap and easy.

Start watching some cooking shows, learn the basic French, Italian, and Chinese sauce bases and you can make a great variety of wonderful dishes for next to nothing!

Processed food is disgusting... even restaurant food is gross if you learn how to cook!

[underpants]

26. My wife buys paper (Seventh Gen) and assorted items on Amazon.com

look into it

we also buy lots of stuff at farmers markets-tomatoes for instance (ours aren't in yet) were much cheaper from the guy who grew them as opposed to in the store.

[Phentex]

32. Many stores will not take printable coupons and

it seems the sites like the one you mentioned rely on the printables. I think it's great to use coupons and I have saved that way. However, there aren't any for the "real" items you need. I am able to save money on some cleaning items when I have coupons though.

[yellowdogintexas]

33. I also use very few coupons because the things I buy don't have coupon offers

but I get non perishables like paper goods and plastic bags etc., the canned goods I use the most (diced tomatoes, chicken broth, mushrooms and Ro-Tel) at Costco, at amazing savings. Detergents also. The only laundry product I purchase outside of Costco is Downy unscented because Costco doesn't carry it. I get that at Target.

I have never bought large quantities of meat @ Costco but I am considering it, now that I have a new refrigerator.

We have a wonderful store here in Texas called Central Market. On the surface it appears to be very pricey and upscale. However, the most recent coupon package will offer 7 weekly specials, as follows:

week 1 Free McConnells ice cream and $5 off fresh berries.
week 2 Free 1 pound Fajita meat choice of beef or chicken
week 3 $10 off produce
week 4 Free pound of meat patties made in the butcher shop, or made in store sausage (20 varieties) w/free
8 pack of made in the bakery buns
week 5 $10 off choice steak (grass fed Angus no hormone super tender beef)
week 6 a free Central Market Limited Edition collapsible cooler which looks pretty neat.

the only requirement is $40 spent in the store on food items, which is about what I spend for just me, if I buy a lot of produce.

I have come home with free seafood, free steak, free chicken breasts, all kinds of things. I also have 2 sets of stemless wine glasses, several Wusthoff knives, bamboo salad tossers, large canvas tote bags all through the coupons.

In addition, there is a bulk section of spices, grains, beans, cereals, nuts, candies, flour, teas, coffees, granolas, snack mixes etc. that offers amazing value. I bought a huge baggie of cinnamon for about $2.50 which is about what you pay for a tiny tin of McCormick. I buy steel cut oats for .99 a pound. That's a big bag of oatmeal!

Another chain which is national (Albertson's) offers fantastic buy 1 get 1 free sales on meat. I watch for those and stock up on pork chops, petite sirloins and chicken breasts, and get other items on occasion as well.

I have been on Weight Watchers for past 2 1/2 years and lost nearly 60 pounds; I eat a LOT of fresh veg and fresh fruit. I choose to go to CM because their stuff is so much fresher it keeps longer and they have incredible variety, focusing on what is in season always. In Sept there must be 20 different kinds of apples all domestically grown oh yeah the source of the food is always on the bin, down to the actual farm if it is in Texas. I have been fortunate that I have not had to pinch pennies while on WW I honestly do not know how one would do that if on a tight budget, even if you shop on the cheap.

I am very good at shopping on the cheap and when we were low on funds I was very good at the coupon clip and the in store specials and making a whole chicken turn into 3 meals. I could still do it if I need to. But it is really depressing to go into the lower end markets and look at the produce that looks like it is about to head for the compost heap. I used to come out of those stores feeling I had not accomplished anything because a lot of what I wanted to buy was in no shape to be sold.

I would love to shop the ethnic markets but they are not convenient at all. I shop closer to home and save the gas.

[Summer93]

34. Dry milk

When I was growing up in a family of seven children my Mom mixed Carnation Instant Dry Milk and then mixed that half and half with whole milk for $ savings. I wonder if that would work these days.

[SoCalDem]

35. I was a refunder-couponer back before it was trendy

Used to have my mailbox stuffed daily with dollar bills & small denomimation refund checks.. Some months I "made" several hundred dollars..

I once made our local paper when I ended up paying $1.47 for almost $400 worth of groceries.. But I will tell you this.

It takes a LOT of effort to do it in a big way..and lots of time.
If you are interested, start small and join a group..

It also takes a LOT of space to store all those "*pops).. Your friends will think you are crazy, when they catch you removing a upc from something they threw away:)

* proof of purchase

[ieoeja]

36. Drink more beer.

I fill up on beer nightly. Saves me tons of money at the grocery store.

[pink-o]

42. Ha Ha!! When I was a starving young (sometimes) student in London

This Irish guy told me that if I couldn't afford dinner, go to the pub and have a pint of Guiness--cuz that was all the nutrients I needed.



:rofl: :rofl:

Actually, if you count the Vitamin B's and stuff in the grain, you could make an argument for that. But we didn't really question it too much: in 1975 Guiness was about 35 pence a pint, and it kept you warm and full--and feeling fine--on a winter night!

[Contrary1]

40. My brother works 11:00pm to 7:00am...

He stops by a nearby grocery 2 or 3 times a week on his way home. He finds terrific buys on seafood and dairy products that are expiring that day. 25 cents for a half gallon of sweet acidophilus milk is just one example.

I have been freezing milk for months with no problem...methinks I need to get up a bit earlier and beat him to the grocery. ;)

[gatorboy]

43. Step 1: Eat dirt.

[Ilsa]

46. Most of the coupons I find are for highly processed foods.

Lots of powdered stuff with alot of preservatives, some of which give us headaches. I look for in-store coupons, and sometimes they work for us, but they usually don't.