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25 Ways to Make the Most of Grocery Dollars
from the National Cooperative Grocers Association
Want to make the most of your food purchasing dollars? With rising grain prices, greater fuel costs and increased global demand for both, food prices have increased and are expected to stay high for the foreseeable future.
But, according to the National Cooperative Grocers Association (NCGA), people may find that planning and making minor adjustments to their grocery shopping activities can significantly increase the power of their grocery dollars.
"Simple activities, such as developing a food budget, planning before shopping, changing how you prepare meals and continuously looking at spending habits all are ways to make the most of your shopping dollars," said Robynn Shrader, chief executive officer for NCGA, a business services cooperative representing 109 natural food co-ops nationwide.
Implementing these tips can take time. But, by following them, individuals can accomplish more with their grocery dollars and may even spend more time with their families cooking, dining and conversing, to boot.
Tips for Making the Most of Your Grocery Dollars*:
Set a Budget:
Calculate your current food expenditures
Decide on your grocery budget
Stick to your budget by setting up a tracking method, much like your checkbook
Plan Ahead:
Clean out expired or unusable food from the pantry and fridge
Inventory what's in your freezer
Draw up a list of staple foods you'll need every week
Create a grocery list you can re-use every week
Share the list with your family for their input
Clip coupons, but only for items on your list
Plan your shopping around sales
Shop Wisely:
Stick to your list; avoid impulses
Coordinate your purchases with what's in season
Focus on the perimeter of the store, where bulk, produce and basics are most available
Consider special orders of bulk quantities of food
Change Your Patterns:
Prepare the produce you've purchased (i.e., clean and slice strawberries and store in a container in your fridge)
Organize your cupboard
Put a message pad or board on your fridge with meal plans and snack options
Don't overstock
Minimize purchasing food at convenience stores where prices often are higher
Slowly add more cooking time into your schedule
Plant a vegetable and herb garden
Try to eat as a household more often
Re-evaluate Your Methods:
Try your budget and plan for a few months before assessing
Continually monitor how you're spending your food budget
Adjust your budget, if necessary
*NCGA thanks Liz McMann, Education & Special Projects Manager at Mississippi Natural Foods Market in Saint Paul, Minn., for these tips.
About the Author:
National Cooperative Grocers Association (NCGA), founded in 1999, is a business services cooperative for retail food co-ops
located throughout the United States. NCGA is owned by 109 food co-ops operating more than 130 stores in 32 states with combined
annual sales of over $945 million. NCGA helps unify natural food co-ops in order to optimize operational and marketing resources,
strengthen purchasing power, and ultimately offer more value to natural food co-op shoppers everywhere. For a map of co-op member
locations, visit www.ncga.coop/member-stores. To learn more about NCGA, visit www.ncga.coop.
To learn more about co-ops, visit www.go.coop.
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25 Ways to Make the Most of Grocery Dollars
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