How we feed ourselves has a huge effect on how much cash we keep in our wallets. That’s why supermarket-savings advice is ubiquitous in the era of new frugality.
The average American family of four spends about $5,000 a year on food prepared at home, according to the federal government’s Consumer Expenditure Survey. So a 20 percent savings could yield a cool $1,000.
The usual advice is to shop with a list, stock up on sale items and use coupons. Here are some other tricks:
Don’t pay for plump: Plumping is the injection of store-bought chicken and turkey with salty water, broth and other flavoring liquids. Meat producers say it enhances taste and tenderness. But frugal consumers claim you’re paying chicken prices for saltwater.
Don’t pay for water or plastic: With similar reasoning, don’t pay for the water in iced tea, orange juice or even household cleaners you can make yourself, said Gary Foreman, editor of TheDollarStretcher.com. A corollary is “don’t pay for plastic.”
Check the salad bar: Prepared lettuce, fresh fruits and cheeses can be cheaper at the supermarket salad bar. Check the price per pound, said Marcia Layton Turner of OrganizeYourCouponsNow.com.
Make it last: Spoiled food is a waste of money and can eliminate any savings from stockpiling and using coupons. Teri Gault, founder of TheGroceryGame.com offers these tips to keep food fresh longer: Remove lettuce and other leafy greens from their plastic packages and wrap them in a clean dish towel to place in the refrigerator. Keep eggs in the original carton and place in the coldest part of the fridge. Transfer milk to a glass bottle to make it last twice as long.
Use the butcher: Pick up a pork loin, which sells for about half the cost of boneless pork loin chops. Ask the supermarket butcher to cut it into chops. “For the same price as a package of one dinner’s worth of pork chops, you’ll have enough to put in the freezer for another week,” Nelson said.
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