Prime example of why you stock. Often retailers will pull a trick of having a big sale on a item just before they are considering a price hike, Their idea is that you will forget the regular price and not notice that they have either lowered the quanity of the item, or raised the price or both,
Oh, his true, My husband Kent telling me every time I bought a 1/2 pound bag of cheese, that we already had cheese. I knew how much cheese we ha, amd the small packages looked like I was buying an enormous amount, But I just new with thembuyout ofmcheese from the USDA! It was going to skyrocket. After all, the buyout was to help the farmers make more money. They had a glut on the market.
I predicted five dollars a pound. It was seven dollars a pound at Freddies yesterday. I who'd love comments on the proce of cheese on your area.
Stocking , especially when you catch wind of an event that will effect the cost of a stable product softens the blow of the price hike. I can freeze gratedmcheese, we eat a lot, I, nitmstocking a freezer full, but I probably bought ten pounds, That will probably take is to the first of the year.
I can soften our cheese blow to the budget. But, beef, eggs, and chicken are going to take a hike too. Probably two to four percent. It's not such a blow. I still haven't found chicken split breasts for a buck lately, they missed their rotation. At the dollar plus that they are at Winco, they are still a good buy considering the cost of boneless, skinless chicken breast.
When a vegetable takes a hike, you can substitute. When almost every protein takes a hike, and you have already reduced your consumption, you have to just eat it. We will probably go vegetarian an extra meal and change our meal matrix. Watch for big sales. If people don't buy it, there will be a overstock, and the price will go down.
When coffee prices went up, I just watched for sales. We aren't coffee snobs, so anymbrand as long as it's not too strong, will do. We only drink 1 pot a day and my daughter uses the coffee pod you fill. I have to drink some coffee Per my doctor, The coupons so far haven't been useful; & the prices are too large in the first place. A coupon will do you no good if the price plus the coupon is more than another brand. Unless , you particularly love that brand and can't do without it. Not recommended for a very strict budget.
Particular no not for a very strict budget. My mother wouldn't allow certain things on the house. She used the excuse that they were not good for us which was mostly true.
- Pop, Soda. Whatever you call it. The fizz supposedly can strip you bones from calcium, and the sugar can lead to obesity. If you need pop, buy the water that has no sodium and no artificial sweeteners and no carbs. And, drink it in moderation. LA Croix.
- Packaged cookies and donuts, ( sugar, hydroginated oils, oreservatives.
- Potato chips ( full of salt )
- Gum
- Kool aid
- Expensive fruits and vegetables. Fresh pineapple was a rare treat. When my aunt came to live with us during the summer , she bought us things that were healthy, but mom couldn't afford. Those days, fresh fruit , except apples, was prohibitive because we weren't as global as we are now.
- Almost anything that was ready made.
Almost all of that list is either costly, or bad for you.
Attitude goes a long ways on cutting your food bill. Eating healthy is not hard on a strict budget. Eating fad diets or trendy diets , however is hard. Wait till the trendy diets become regular diets and have proven themselves to be really healthy. There was a craze a few years ago that low fat was good for you. Low fat didn't mean no fat. We switched to fake butter and fake fat. Now, they have discovered that fake fat made us obese. And, fake butter has hydrogenated oil and is really bad for us and a contributor to heart disease. Fake sugar, too, contributes to obesity. The fake sugar sticks to you fat cells and makes them fatter. Try to stick to the real thing in moderation.
According to at least one doctor. Vegan diets are bad for you. You may be being kind to animals and the environment, but you aren't being kind to yourself. If you choose to be vegan, the doctor strongly suggests you take supplements to out back what you took out. He also said not to go on fad diets, just lower your consumption and stay away from sugar.
Random thoughts.
Groceries on the cheap is looking at the "put the meal on the table train" from a diferent perspectives.
The emphasis is on purchasing good shelf stable or frozen food for a RBP in quantity - enough to last you until they goes on sale again or to keep a controlled non-perishable stock of the things you use on a weekly basis.
This means that instead of shopping daily or weekly for just the things you need to cook your
meals for the week. You go to two stores and buy :
1) a protein that is a RBP - enough to make that meal for x number of days. (I.e.: if you eat it once a week, buy enough for 4 meals.)
2) produce and dairy you will need to fill in the meals for the week.
3) a stock item, if you need to and it is on a RBP - enough to fill in to your self imposed stock level.
You often are paying 1/2 price for your food. This allows you to put well-balanced meals on the table consistently on a four dollar a day per person budget. You spend more time on the
locomotive ( planning and shopping ) end of the train, and less time in the caboose ( kitchen )by
cooking more efficiently.
Four dollars a day is the target amount for people on snap. My premise is that of you can do it on 4 dollars a day, spending more isn't hard
No comments:
Post a Comment