Help reducing grocery bill?

[AnnaRaven]

Okay - I am kindof embarrassed to admit this but - we spent *WAY* too much on groceries last year. I know some of it was actually for wine and liquor (which they sell at the grocery stores here) so that probably inflates the grocery bill cost.

But still - I need to get this under control. Help!

I don't understand. I cook *every* fricking day. I buy *ingredients* not prepared stuff. I belong to a CSA. I buy on sale and at costco. I just don't really understand why I'm spending so much on groceries.

Yes - I'm planting a garden (now that we have a house with a yard) and I have chickens in the backyard so I don't have to buy eggs. The CSA helps me avoid going into the store for random stuff... although I end up not using a lot of the CSA stuff fast enough. I buy bulk stuff and generic stuff.

So, I'm not looking so much on how to eat cheaper (yet), so much as how to figure out where the money is going that I'm spending. I use Mint.com so I know when I shop at a particular store like Safeway or Costco or whatever... I just, I don't know anymore how to cut down on the crazy amounts of money I'm spending on groceries. I'm just baffled. And I don't mean for short-term but for the long-run. Does anyone have a maintainable long-term way of keeping their grocery bills at a reasonable level and knowing how much they're spending on what?

 

[CJW]

I started a spreadsheet on every grocery receipt and on each item I got. I put it in by month, and I can also see if things are cheaper at one store or another, and find out what their sale cycles are.

I have a large grocery bill for our family of 4, but, we have very little medical expenses. We also choose not to have many things in our diets either due to celiac/allergies or the fact that most things you buy in a typical grocery store are not good for you. We buy organic food whenever possible, and I cook from scratch most of the time, too. I am very excited to start digging my garden this spring!

You are fortunate you live near a big-box store that has things you will eat. We only have a Sam's club here, and finding organic food in that place is almost not worth the hassle. I found some spaghetti sauce once, but it wasn't very good, and it was more expensive than if I were to make it from canned sauce/paste, etc.

I guess I will also share how we reduce food consumption in our house, since that can play a large role in what the bill will be.

One thing that helps us is making sure everyone in the family knows that taking food whenever they feel like it, well--its not an option. If they eat it before they should, they won't get it when the time comes. The boys have to ask my permission to have a snack. If I didn't monitor their food quantities, I would be getting a job just to buy groceries.

Our oldest son loves to eat apple after apple after apple. He has been asked many times to not eat extras. I purchase apples (I have bought them in bulk, but its hard to fork out that kind of dough at one time) and have them last a certain amount of days-

If I buy x apples, it will last x days if everyone eats x apples in one week.

(Our boys eat one apple every day, before bed. My husband and I are not big apple fans, unless they are fresh from the oven!) Many nights, he has gone to bed without it, because he chose to eat his in the morning, etc.

Another thing is portion sizing. I only make enough for everyone to eat a good portion, but not too much. I dish it up at the stove (so I can control the portion size), and we sit and eat at the table. It keeps our eyes on each other, instead of fighting over who gets the rest of the_________. If there is any left, the kids usually will get it, but if they want more, they have to clean their plates. I don't make them clean their plate if they are full, but if they are still hungry after finishing what is on their plate, they can have more. If anyone is still hungry, there is celery, carrots or other snacks in the fridge. I also went to the thrift store and got smaller plates. This really helps at dinner time because the plate is full, so it gives the illusion you are getting huge amounts of food, but in reality, its about 25-40% less than the larger plates.

We also don't drink many extra fluids. Water is our main drink, and I keep an eye on how much the kids are drinking. They do have almond milk, but we rarely have juice around. We try not to drink calories-it is way too expensive. My husband does drink coffee, but only a travel mug full per day, so we have a french press and only use enough grounds to make what he eats. That prevents excess waste.

I need to work on making extra (sauce, meat, etc) and separating the servings and start cooling/freezing the extras, before serving the family. I also need to learn how to make bread, and I am working on a gluten free noodle dough.

Good Luck!

 

[AnnaRaven]

Well, that's a lot of great information. I like the idea of a spreadsheet of the grocery receipts. That'll really help me see what I'm buying, where and how much it's costing me.

I have to be careful about buying things in bulk - I've had things go bad before I used them... talk about a waste!

I do like to have on hand soups and broths (organic, no HFCS) and canned veggies (DH actually prefers canned veggies) and I also buy a lot of pasta because DH is from Italy.

I already do portion control - DH has lost 40 pounds in the past year, on purpose.

I think some of [the problem] is just buying extraneous, non-grocery stuff (like cut flowers or wine) at the grocery stores and it gets counted as groceries, and some is wasting money on "luxury items" - like DH was shopping with me and picked out some silly things.

I never buy spaghetti sauce pre-made. It always has sugar added. Yuck.

On your spreadsheet - do you track how many of each item you bought at a time or just how much it was per item/pound? (Like, if you bought 4 cans of something, do you list it as 4 xyz $1.00 each or 4 xyz 1.00 total 4.00 or what?

 

[AnnaRaven]

Okay, so I just went through the two receipts I've got for this month and found out that progresso soup sells for 1.59 at safeway and 2.59 at piazzas. Gee - guess where I'm going to be buying my soup next time?

I'll have to compare prices on other stuff to - not ALL the prices are that crazy different...
I can do this.

EDIT: Okay, just checked and that was just for a special. Still... gotta keep an eye on that stuff.

 

[SKR8PN]

Buy in bulk and only when it is on sale. Then stock up the pantry and either freeze, can or store the majority of it.
Example: Meijers had carrots on sale. 10, 3lb packages for $1.00 per package and get the 11th one free. I can't grow them that cheap! We bought 40 packages, got 4 for free and canned every last one of them. That made enough pints of carrots to last us well over a year. We do the same thing with potatoes and fruits when they are in season.

These buckets are full of salt, sugar, brown sugar, flour, beans, honey, rice, etc. ALL bought on sale and in bulk.

Bulk soup mixes and some soup/broth that was on sale CHEAP!

Yes, it takes a little time, a little planning, and some work to get this far ahead, but it is worth every penny, when you can just go to your pantry, and not the store, and pick out your next few meals.

 

[CJW]

Well, that's a lot of great information. I like the idea of a spreadsheet of the grocery receipts. That'll really help me see what I'm buying, where and how much it's costing me.

On your spreadsheet - do you track how many of each item you bought at a time or just how much it was per item/pound? (Like, if you bought 4 cans of something, do you list it as 4 xyz $1.00 each or 4 xyz 1.00 total 4.00 or what?

Right now, I don't have it set up for quantities, but total price. When they all sit next to each other, I can get a rough idea of how much they were each (Lets say, tomato sauce-if I buy 2 one day because I ran out and they aren't on sale-and then I go back a few days later when they are on sale and buy 8...I can still somewhat see what I spent, because I know I wouldn't spend 3.00 on one, but 2, well, that seems normal, so when I see it for 11.00, I am pretty sure there were 8.) I cant wait to can my own sauce this year! What a great savings that will be!

I also have saved my receipts, so I could go back if I want. I probably hold on to them for 3-4 months, then burn them.

I don't buy many of the extras, like wine or flowers (I have never been a flower person), but maybe you can try making your own pasta? That might help? I know one 16 oz bag of gluten free noodles is almost 4 dollars here! Also, if you buy a lot of soups, maybe start canning your own? Take a day to make a few different batches?

Wow SKR8PN-great pantry!

 

[patandchickens]

I do like to have on hand soups and broths (organic, no HFCS)

That may be a significant budget item there... and certainly one you can GREATLY decrease. Making your own stock and soups is ever so much more inexpensive and better. Especially if you are eating your own chickens but even if you're eating store-boughten. Buy whole chickens, eat the meat, then make stock from the carcasses. Freeze the resulting stock; or get a pressure-canner and can it for even greater convenience.

and canned veggies (DH actually prefers canned veggies)

Pressure canner

On your spreadsheet - do you track how many of each item you bought at a time or just how much it was per item/pound? (Like, if you bought 4 cans of something, do you list it as 4 xyz $1.00 each or 4 xyz 1.00 total 4.00 or what?

It depends what your goal is, but for budget-reduction purposes I think you're best off recording the total expenditure. Then if you discover you are spending (say) $50/month on chocolate, you can go back and see in more detail how much chocolate that represents and how brands compare and so forth... but you will have already found out the IMPORTANT part which is that it was costing you $50/month.

Another thing that can really inflate food expenses, I have no idea if this applies to your situation and maybe it doesn't, is deciding "I shall make this recipe today!" or "gee I have not had cantaloupe in a long time" and going out and buying things based on whim rather than on season/price. If you base your menus around what is cheap-and-in-good-condition at the market, rather than shopping according to an independantly determined menu, it really makes a difference (potentially quite large for some people, e.g. my raspberries-in-January sister )

Good luck, have fun,

Pat

 

[i_am2bz]

I think some of [the problem] is just buying extraneous, non-grocery stuff (like cut flowers or wine) at the grocery stores and it gets counted as groceries, and some is wasting money on "luxury items" - like DH was shopping with me and picked out some silly things.

I do that a lot...I wonder, how could 2 people spend $100/wk on food??? Then I realize $25-30 of it is just on pet items (dog/cat food, cat litter, rawhide chews, pee pads, etc.) Then take out shampoo, mouthwash, TP, tin foil, detergent, etc. etc. etc. & I'm really only buying about 1/2 that amount in actual food.

BTW, I have pantry-envy too, SKR8PN!!

 

[Denim Deb]

Get some 3 x 5 cards, as well as a box to hold them in. If you can find the colored ones, they work well. Then, go thru your receipts as well as your circulars. You're going to either use a different color card for each type of item (white-dairy, pink-meat, or whatever) or use something to separate the sections in your box. Now, take a pencil-not pen!-and write down the item, where you bought it and the unit cost. If you've bought it in more than one store, write down all the stores and the unit cost.

If you live in an area where grocery stores are close together, check the circulars from each one b4 you go shopping. Plan your menus based on what's on sale, then write up your shopping list. Make sure you know which store you'll be buying an item in. Then, unless there's some super, unexpected deal (like butter on sale for $1.50/lb) STICK TO YOUR LIST!!!!!!! Start w/the store farthest away, and work your way towards home.

Do not buy things like beef cubes, boneless, skinless chicken breasts, etc unless they're really cheap. Instead, buy things like a roast or whole chicken, and cut up your own. Eat what you can, then freeze the rest, but make sure you write down on the package what it is and when you bought it.

If your store marks anything down for quick sale, try to figure out when they put it out. If you can get any of those items, that can help cut down on your bill.

Check the unit price of an item if there's more than one size. The largest is not always the cheapest. And sometimes, it's actually cheaper to buy the smaller, even if it's more expensive. For us, that's normally for items like OTC pain relievers. We don't use a lot of them. And, while a large bottle may be cheaper per pill, if we don't use it up by the expiration date, then it actually costs us more. If you buy detergent, instead of the unit price, go by how many loads of laundry it does.

Take a calculator w/you. Set a limit on how much you're going to spend. Then, each time you put an item in your cart, subtract that amount from your total.

Only use coupons if they're for something you're going to buy anyway.

 

[FarmerChick]

you haven't been on the site long with 11 posts so I don't know your style

how many are eating?
do you seriously have the cash to just buy what you want, or is the high grocery bill truly cutting into finances?

you can cut in so many ways.

#1 just don't buy it

#2 use some coupons combined with sales, buy 1 get 1 etc

#3 grow your own if you are the more SS type

#4 buy more generic equivaent products

#5 buy less cleaners etc and buy one cleaner that "can do it all" or use simple homemade products



My normal is $80 to 100 per week for 3 of us

I buy what I truly want

when I go "more crazy" it is like $120-130 (buy some needless things along with wants and extra stock up items if sale is great)


but the other day, I spent $175
I bought some dog toys (yea I know), extra good treats for the cat, (why? they are barn cats but I like a few of them and I felt generous), stocked up on some meats that the prices were great, bought tons of out of season fruits that I was itching to eat,

and that $175 was with $33 in savings LOL so I spent alot but next week will be like $60 for some items I just need when I go.




You love flowers. Don't buy them at the store. Stop by your local florist and see what they have "just going out of good"
I can easily get a giagantic bouquet of "almost anything beautiful" for like $3-7 and that gets me the best of the best. yea the life is shorter maybe by a day or 2, but the price means I can "have it all" and enjoy beautiful flowers all the time. (or grow your own of course lol)


wine---well if you can hit a sale on your fav, then stock up big time. if you are a true winner, lol, then hit some local vineyards. they sell by discount on cases. NC has alot of vineyards towards the mountains, who knew, lol. the give great tours and sell great wines.

but if you want to cut a bill---you can easily. You know how to do it, ya just have to want to do it...lol