Wednesday, May 15, 2019

How I DRAMATICALLY Reduced My Grocery Budget!





I have been catching up our finances and I noticed a STARTLING trend in my grocery costs. Nope! They didn't go up! They dramatically dropped!

How did I do it? 


I began hyper-focusing on store markdowns and weekly bulk cooking. 




There have been some significant health benefits to eating, shopping, and cooking this way!


  • We have been eating healthier, since the markdowns I chose to buy were nearly exclusively from the produce section! 
  • We've had more veggies and fruits in my house the first quarter of this year, that we have in the past. 
  • My kids have been making healthier choices, because food is made in advance and available for eating and snacking. 

Actual numbers from my budget!



I'm going to give you actual numbers, comparing my grocery totals for the first three months of 2018 to those of 2019. These numbers represent BOTH my food and household items (like shampoo, toilet paper, toothpaste, etc.)


Here we go!


FIRST QUARTER TOTALS:  FOOD AND HOUSEHOLD EXPENSES
MONTH 2018 2019
JANUARY $418.00 $244.84
FEBRUARY $424 $299.57
MARCH $588.30 $274.37
TOTAL $1,430.24 $818.78




I saved over $600! 



Wow! Seriously! That's all I can say! Even I, after decades of thrifty living, would never has suspected that two simple changes could make that much difference! Remember, I have one husband and four sons. Most of the time, I feed 5 people and add another in the summer when our oldest son returns from college for break. My boys are not little. They are 22, 20, 14, and 11 years of age and can eat as much as my grown husband - if not more. 

What's my monthly budget? 

The simplest answer is: my monthly spending on food AND household supplies is $450 for our family of 6. But, when I look at my monthly spreadsheet, I only have $400 available to spend. Here's why.

For many years, we have been members of a local Community Supported Agriculture group. That means in January I write one, huge check for $600 and hand it over to a small, local, organic farmer. He takes my money (and that of the other members) and uses it to purchase seed and supplies for the upcoming growing season. In return, each member receives a bushel basket produce every week during the growing season.  In Illinois, the growing season runs from mid-May through the end of October. 

I subtract $50 a month from the food budget to pay for my CSA membership in full each January. So, when I look at my spreadsheet, the total I can spend on food AND household supplies every month is $400.

Why is the first quarter of the year so hard? 


After our CSA boxes begin to arrive, staying within that additional $400 a month for food and household is easy-peasy. But, I have always overspent during the first quarter of the year! As the winter progresses, I use up produce that I have stored in the freezer (from last year's growing season). So, the budget has traditionally been stretched (really OVERstretched would be the proper word) during the cold weather season. 

Recognizing that I was straining our food budget later on in the year, I decided to try something new this year. 


What's my strategy? 


1. Shopping markdowns!




Nearly every grocery store has a markdown section. That's the area for items, which are close to the "sell by" date. Let us be VERY clear: These items are NOT bad, rancid, or inedible. They are perfectly good. You simply need to use them up within a few days or freeze them for later use. 

TODAY, RIGHT NOW: I want you to call your local store and find out what time of day they do their markdowns.*You may need to ask for the information for each department. Don't assume that dairy and meat are marked down at the same time as produce. Be sure to ask. Then, time your grocery visit to coincide with that time of day, so that you can get the best selection of marked down merchandise. 

2. $50 Weekly bulk cooking! 




Over the past few weeks, I have posted multiple $50 weekly menu plans (along with photos and links). Yes! That's the amount of money I spent on an entire week for my family - That includes breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snacks!  

In case you missed them, you can click on "bulk cooking" in the topical directory on  right hand side of the blog or here are a few links to get you going in the right direction: 






Your turn! 

What are your strategies for cutting down on grocery costs? Share your thoughts with us in the comments section. 


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Do all to the glory of God, 

Hope

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