# Food prices- any tricks?



## Tabitha (Jun 28, 2008)

I have noticed, over the past 6 months food prices in Tx have gone up 50-60%, but they did it a consistent 10% a month so no one could really pinpoint when the increase happened, it was gradual. In Jan I could get a cart full of groceries for $100.00, now those same items cost $150-160. They have raised prices in 2 different main ways.

A) A flat out price increase, items that used to cost $1.00 now cost anywhere from $1.50- $1.60.
B) Less content in a larger/same size container. The box of cereal That I paid $3.00 for in Jan had 20 servings, that same size box is still $3.00 but now has 16 servings. I just came back from a video store & the box of chocolate covered raisins that used to be fairly full, now contains a small cello  bag inside that bounces around the box, same price as before.

What I am doing to cut costs:

I have been purchasing all of my fruits, veggies & eggs local. Cucumbers at the grocers are $1.00 ea, at farmers market they are 3 for $1.00.

I have been buying store brands on *some* items. There are some items I won't skimp on like cookies, bread, crackers, cereal, etc. but for pasta, rice, soups,  and more, store brand works for me.

I have also been paying attention to inshote sales. I went in w/ the intention of buying 3 cans of Pillsbury crescent rolls, they are $2.29, but cans of Pillsbury french bread sticks were on sale for $1.00.

We have been baking our own snacks rather than buying snack cakes, etc & that both saves money & is for the kids.

Doing a quick inventory of the pantry before shopping helps too. 

Just doing the above has knocked my bill down to between $80-100.

I have also found I can purchase the coupons that I will really  use, on ebay in bulk. I just bought  (20) $1.00 off per box of morningstar products. I paid  $3.00, which will save $17.00  when I use them ($20.00 minus the $3.00 I paid).

I am wondering what tricks everyone uses to cut costs.


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## digit (Jun 28, 2008)

Stop eating - I need some more soap oils.   

Seriously, I back off on "bad for you, but oh so handy" packaged stuff. Back when my budget was pretty much coins, everything had a place on a menu. Example: tops of green pepper goes into spaghetti sauce one night, next night, left over sauce with rice goes into pepper (stuffed peppers). I wrote my menu based on sales. There was no stocking up.

Coupons. Grocery store coupons to double your coupons on certain days. Sale items are often the ones in the Sunday paper. But can still cost more than a lesser brand. I occasionally lower my standards.   

Really plain grocery store.  No fancy stuff, cut open boxes of cans on the shelf. They bragged they had the best baggers in town - you.    And that was in Texas.

Can vegatables in season when they are cheaper. Go at the end of the day to the farmers market to get produce that will not be viable tomorrow. But you have to be up to canning that night.

When things were *real* tight, I found that a bag of dried beans (about $0.40 at the time), some ketchup and mustard could last me a week. Chicken necks and rice. Chicken necks and dumplings (made with plain flour and water). Fried flat cornbread (no $$ for levening agents or milk). Fish a lot. We......uh......well, did not get a license. Secret spot deep on the river or a creek somewhere. Crawdads from the drainage ditch and rice. Mega berries in the summer time. Drink a lot of water, fills the belly for a short time.

Electricity was overrated. I had gas to cook on, got up with sun, down with the sun. Took 2 months to save up the deposit. 

Some things about the old days I do not miss.   

Digit


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## mare61 (Jun 28, 2008)

You're on the right track with shopping local. I know, that sometimes it seems cheaper to buy canned food that came from "god knows where" than shopping  for fresh produce. But in the end you get more for your money. Could you grow a garden? Try to find a local farmer, that sells meat off the farm. It's funny really! We are pig farmers here in Canada and for the last while pig prices were way down and we lost about $ 50 on each pig we shipped but this never registered in the grocery stores. Right now the prices went up about $ 40 but now the price for feed like corn and wheat have almost doubled so we are still losing a lot of money. But the prices in the stores just keep raising.

I know that I will try harder to stretch my groceries like digit suggested.
I have my own garden with lots of fresh veggies, apples and berries and most of my own meat (pork, beef and chicken) and eggs. I also bake my own bread and sweets and get my milk cheaper from a neighbour.


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## Guest (Jun 29, 2008)

I keep the local supermarket's weekly advertisement handy, and then when I'm planning my dinner I look at the advertisement for what's on special and I cook that instead of just deciding what to cook and buying it regardless of the cost.


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## Guest (Jun 29, 2008)

Have you tried shopping at the farmer's market? If you go last minute they are usually trying to throw food at you for very cheap


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## Guest (Jun 29, 2008)

I don't think we have any farmers markets here in big, bad Los Angeles. If so they'd probably be too far to drive to, spend more money on gasoline than the money I save on groceries. I'm buying and cooking for one person most of the time and I can't buy much food in advance or it spoils before I can use it. I usually just go to the supermarket right before dinner and get what I need for that day. My supermarket is only a few blocks away, just barely too far to walk carrying groceries.

Actually I should start saving money by eating less. I'm not the only one who is bigger than they need to be.


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## Lane (Jun 29, 2008)

Since trying to eat healthier, Our grocery bill jumped from $100 a week to $170 a week.  :shock: 

Last week, I finally gave up on cooking and got most of my items from the frozen food section.  :cry: Less healthier, but our bill dropped back down to $98. 

From what I am saving in time, just tossing a casserole in the oven and not buying separate ingredients, I think until money gets better, it's going to have to work! 

My mom is HUGE on cooking, and just from her example, I've always made big involving meals. Prep time, cook time and clean time, added up, A meal would take me between 2 and three hours to complete. Something frozen, I pop in the oven and then toss the pan afterwards...

 :shock: So it's a stack of frozen food and multi vitamins over in this house for the time being....


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## Guest (Jun 29, 2008)

I've grown to have an increased appreciation of beans and rice.  I cook beans with sausage and eat over rice with chow-chow and hot sauce.  The next day you can fry the rice with fresh vegetables and still eat it with beans.  We raise alot of what we eat, though including meat, eggs, and dairy products.  A meal at my house can range from anything as normal as fried chicken to anything as abnormal as yogurt and scrambled eggs as a main course.


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## zajanatural (Jun 29, 2008)

We shop at the local market and support the local farmers rather than buying those items in the stores. Things like fruits, veggies, lunch meats, dairy products, steaks, roasts etc are purchased at the local market.  Things we cannot get at the market we get at the regular store.  There is also a little Latin place that we go to that has things so much cheaper than the store does.  We probably save $75 each shopping trip buying this way.


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## IanT (Jun 29, 2008)

see around me they have this place the red barn flea market, Ive been dieing to get over there theyve got every veggie you could imagine!!... 


my food bill is nuts, for 1 person i ve been spending between $50 and $150 for a week or so.....eeek!


I have got to sit down and work a budget out one of these days...real soon since Ive got my apartment now..


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## IanT (Jun 29, 2008)

ooooh ! and I found a place today that will sell you a whole, half or quarter cow....all for 3.39 per pound...now THATS a good price...I wonder how much meat 1/4 of a cow is?? or if I get the half ....hehehehehe..(rubs together hands and licks lips)....meeeaaaaat.


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## Guest (Jun 30, 2008)

Flea market? Who wants to eat fleas?


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## IanT (Jun 30, 2008)

heyy....added protein!!


nooooo!! theres a lot of local farms that sell there and its all like...buy a box of this for $5...welll...Ill give you 2.99.....ooh ok...gracias!!


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## pepperi27 (Jun 30, 2008)

I'm lucky. My ex-husband is in the military so my kids have gov't id's that allows me to shop on base. I spend $300 for groceries and the food lasts for a month. For the fruits and veggies I get them at the market.


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## coral (Jun 30, 2008)

I tend to be buying more in bulk now once a month and takeing advantage of savings that way especially tinned tomatoes for sauces or fruits.
I buy my fresh meat and chicken in bulk and my partner will prepare the different cuts for various meals and then I will freeze this until needed.
Off late I am making lots of soups with fresh vegetables and legumes.
I do not buy fresh vegetables at the supermarket anymore as they are to dear and prefer to buy local at the fruit shop which are almost half price.
Cleaning products are a bare mininum I use my own soap offcuts that does the job .
I find by buying in bulk I am not at the shops everyday buying things I dont need.
This has lowered my grocery bill considerably.


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## earthygirl (Jun 30, 2008)

I'm with y'all as far as the farmers market.  Much cheaper
I bake my own bread and even though flour has gone up in price, its nothing compaired to teh bread prices.  I also have the added advantage of know exactly whats in my bread.

We are in peach season right now, so I am making jam, and freezing and canning peaches.  

I am trying the best I can to save my herb garden, but this drought is making it very hard.  we are down to watering 2 times a week here.  Guess its better than not at all.


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## digit (Jul 1, 2008)

Lane said:
			
		

> My mom is HUGE on cooking, and just from her example, I've always made big involving meals. Prep time, cook time and clean time, added up, A meal would take me between 2 and three hours to complete.



What I used to do when I worked 2 jobs, had very little time and had yet to become friends with the microwave, is cook on Sunday. I would have dueling crock pots going and something roasting in the oven.

Then, divy it up, pop into the freezer, clean up dishes. During the week, I only needed to add a quick vegatable and starch, and voila, quickie meal. 

Another thing I still do, is make frozen dinners. I use the divider plates. Often there is one portion of dinner left over. I make a plate, into the freezer. If it is just a side, I use small plastic containers. On lazy days or when I just do not wanna......pick a plate and into the microwave. You would be surprised at how fast your "freezer menu" grows. 

Another idea, if you have kids, is a small garden. My friend home schools her kids and everything they do has a learning component. Most times the kids do not even realize it. Every year, each child selects a vegetable to grow and take care of, eventually harvesting and preparing a dish from it. Of course, this is all age appropiate for each child. (She has 9   ) Included is a science and econmonics lesson. The kids really do get excited each year about his or her project.

This project could be done in containers. On youtube and the net, there are dozens of sites about container gardening for vegatables.

How about swapping some wonderful soaps for veggies? "Pick you own" farms offer goods for good prices.

Digit


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## Woodi (Jul 1, 2008)

This is a great thread! I don't have much more to add except that I bake all my own bread, always. The breadmaker I bought paid for itself within a year. I also do most cooking from scratch, never buy convenience foods. Farmers' markets abound here, and egg farmers are everywhere. These aren't cheaper but they sure are  fresh and nutritious.

We often eat eggs as a main meal, and lots of rice and peas or beans.

One dish my family raised me on was a mixture of mashed potatoes, split yellow peas, cooked, and saurkraut. Instead of butter in the mashed potatoes,they added lots of pork fat (they'd save the trimmings from roasts and chops). Better than bacon bits. Very tasty, nutritious and filling. One batch lasts a long time. 

My Scottish DH isn't too fond of it, unfortunately.


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## earthygirl (Jul 1, 2008)

here are some of my babies






Rosemary Olive oil sourdough





Oatmeal Raisin

and breakfast goodies
Raisin and cream cheese snails


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## IanT (Jul 1, 2008)

YOU are awesome...I want to make berad so bad!


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## Laurie (Jul 1, 2008)

YUM, YUM.


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## Guest (Jul 2, 2008)

By the way, I have a Korean market near me with vegetable prices about half of my local mainstream supermarket, and better quality. They have about 60% of the prices on seafood, and better quality. I also frequent other Asian and Latino markets and get similarly good deals on other items.

You may feel a bit odd shopping along side with people who don't speak English, but don't write them off and think they don't know what they are doing. Evidently most mainstream Americans ignore the specialty markets and they have a smaller customer base, but give their customers better deals in order to attract customers. There are some good deals there.

You might feel odd shopping at Bang Luck or Vallarta or Hang Kook Market, but you won't feel odd saving money and getting better products. Uh, you might not be able to communicate with them. Just point! 

I learned to say "media libra" at Vallarta when I want half a pound. I haven't figured out "half a pound" in Korean yet, but I always manage to get a half pound of their fine shrimp (half the price of the mainstream supermarket) by just pointing and repeating "half pound, half pound" and then "more" or "less" and pointing some more. It's funny.


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## IanT (Jul 2, 2008)

love hound ...and just so you know, "camarones" is shrimp in espanol! 


pronounce it CAMA"ROLLED R" OHNAAYS



"Queiro media libra de esos camarones por favor!!.....bieeeeeeeen!"


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## Guest (Jul 2, 2008)

I took two years of Spanish in high school. I may have exaggerated a bit for the purposes of telling a good story.


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## IanT (Jul 2, 2008)

Lovehound said:
			
		

> I took two years of Spanish in high school. I may have exaggerated a bit for the purposes of telling a good story.



lol


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## digit (Jul 3, 2008)

earthygirl said:
			
		

> here are some of my babies
> 
> and breakfast goodies
> Raisin and cream cheese snails



Uhhh.....yes, I'll take several dozen of these for the swap.   Well, it is a "Pamper Me" swap.

Digit


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## earthygirl (Jul 3, 2008)

there will be goodies....thats all I am saying


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## Guest (Jul 3, 2008)

Well, today I'm doing the never ending task of picking, washing, cooking, and freezing pounds upon pounds of kale.  I never thought I'd like the stuff, but its like what else can I eat that is equally nutritious and inexpensive?  Yesterday we made about 20 pounds of freezer potaoes.  Can I get a YYYUUUMMM!?!?! They are soooo good!


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## IanT (Jul 3, 2008)

La Oberhasli said:
			
		

> Well, today I'm doing the never ending task of picking, washing, cooking, and freezing pounds upon pounds of kale.  I never thought I'd like the stuff, but its like what else can I eat that is equally nutritious and inexpensive?  Yesterday we made about 20 pounds of freezer potaoes.  Can I get a YYYUUUMMM!?!?! They are soooo good!




OMG I love kale....mmmmmm

the way I usually eat it (because I LOVE it this way..)

Olive oil, grated garlic (to mush), sea salt, pepper (black and crushed red).....saute'e and bada bing bada boooooooooooooooooooom bang zoom straightodamoooooon!!


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## mare61 (Jul 3, 2008)

Oberhasli, what are freezer potatoes???


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## beadella (Jul 3, 2008)

OK, I confess I was too lazy to read all the posts so I may be repeating someone or ones...............but here's my 2 cents worth.

How does your fam feel about soup???  It doesn't have to be the "line up at the shelter" kind with a rock and an old shoe!!    :wink: 

My family consists of 2 humans and 1 fur person, but if you have more, then I suggest buying whole chickens and learning a good baked chicken recipe, then with the leftovers you can make really awsome soup (save the bones to add)  For veggies, I usually just pop in a bag or 2 of my fave frozen mix, or if we have fresh, do a bit of chopping.

Here's what I do:  Butterfly the chicken (cut out the breast bone so the bird lies flat in the pan), season with salt, pepper, and tarragon, on both sides, then bake it, skin side up for about 1 1/2 hours (about 5lb chicken), then let rest for about 15min, while you make a gravy with the pan drippings (just add a tbs of cornstarch in a bit of water, and a bit of milk, and whisk so you don't get lumps), and add couscous, and mixed veg and viola!!!!  Dinn is soyved!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!   8) 

You can make up the recipe as you go along or invest in a few good cookbooks and follow or modify as your taste suits.  I saw pictures of baked bread, and I just got a cookbook that shows a method of baking artisan baked bread in only 5 minutes per day (other than the prep day, which isn't much longer).  Also, when you cook, make a gallon rather than just enough for one meal and freeze in bags, then you have 2 or more meals done on those days when you are just POOPED!!  

If cookbooks seem expensive, check out Amazon in the reseller area, there are some pretty decent deals to be had, and check out the customer reviews for a heads up on the content.

Hope you can get something useful out of my novelette's worth of ideas.  I like cooking so it is easy to talk about................... 8) 

HTH,

Della


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## Wax Munky (Jul 6, 2008)

At our house the trick is..Don't go anywhere! :roll:  we are $350.00 over budget from last month,that we have to catch up on this month.I don't drive my truck now unless the trip is absolutely necessary.It cost well over $100.00 to fill up,with 10 mpg to the gallon..I'll be walking.
So buying non perishables,bulk items,going to the butchers once a month.Investing in a meat slicer has saved us some money.Cooking larger quantities and then freezing meals ahead of time softens this economic woe were all unfortunately stuck in.This was a great topic to start,I've been enjoying reading how everyone else has been getting by.Thanks all 

Munky.


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## Harlow (Jul 6, 2008)

> Cooking larger quantities and then freezing meals ahead of time softens this economic woe were all unfortunately stuck in.



That is a great idea, then when you are tempted to go out to eat because you don't feel like cooking, you don't have to, just heat & serve.

I need to invest in a deep freeze.


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## Laurie (Jul 6, 2008)

Della was talking about soup.  I buy roasters from a very reputable farm  a few miles from my city.  I roast the chicken and then pull all the meat from the bones instead of letting everyone chew it off.  I then boil the bones and set aside some of the meat to make chicken noodle soup the next day.  We also have leftover chicken salad sandwiches, all this from the same roaster.  This is for 6 people.

Food is also my top priority as I plan my days, unfortunately it even comes before soaping.  Just because of the potential for expense.

We also rarely eat out.  We would rather save the expense and stay home and eat cheese tortillas, lol, again and again.

Also years ago when my kids were younger I use to challenge myself to save money out of my grocery budget to buy myself things I wanted.  I just seemed to need those goals or challenges to make life exciting.

Laurie


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## Tabitha (Jul 6, 2008)

> I need to invest in a deep freeze.



We do too!


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## IanT (Jul 6, 2008)

Tabitha said:
			
		

> > I need to invest in a deep freeze.
> 
> 
> 
> We do too!



I cant tell you how long ive wanted one of those...im just scared about the electric bill....

then I could finally buy that half a cow ive been after....at 3.29 per pound...ooooooooooooooooooooooooooo id be like a kid in a candy store (with a piece of meat that looked like something from the flinstoned muahahahahaa)


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## Healinya (Jul 12, 2008)

(expired link)


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