So, what’s in a price.

Prices even in the same area can be drastically different.  There is a big push by food retailers to make things really convenient for people.   Having had two children under the age of 2 at one time, I can certainly understand why people would buy into pick up delivery.

My daughter had development problems due to a medical issue when she was a baby.   At three we had here tested.   She tests with a high IQ and a vocabulary several years past her chronological age.   The doctor asked her where milk came from.....her answer....my Dad.   LOL.  This was because I wasn’t about to drag two children under the age of 2 to the store for bread and milk.   I would call my husband and have him stop on his way home from work.   It was just a whole lot easier.

The fact, none the less, is that they add on a charge one way or another for the convenience of having someone else shop for you.

At Christmas time, I had no desire to battle the crowds to get a few things from Costco.  They offered free delivery, so I used it.  I noticed that the items I bought were more expensive than the same counterparts in the warehouse.  No joke, you are going to pay one way or another for the privilege.   Sometimes, its just worth it.

There is just no doubt, different stores can charge different prices for the exact same thing.   A lot has to do with the climate of the store.   Full service stores with deli’s and meat markets staffed with personnel are more expensive than the no frills store.   If you don’t need the services of a deli or manned meat market, don’t pay the price.   The fancier the store and the more items it has, the more you are going to pay.   Rightly so, if you have to pay the wages and benefits for personnel to provide
services amd stock and rotate stock for a zillion items, it is going to be reflected in the price of the things you buy.

If you are trying to feed your family on the lowest column of the USDA cost of food at home list, using the full service stores sparingly, is a good idea.   Winco and Aldi  save money because you bag your own food.   I prefer it because I know what items need to go to the downstairs freezer and I can pack the food accordingly.   That way, we are not bringing things upstairs , only to bring them down to flights of stairs.   I also have no one to blame but myself for putting the bread on the bottom.  LOL

That being said, I have found as much as a 1.50 swing between the most expensive store and the cheapest store.   That’s  a lot of money percentage wise.   The lesson here is to know your prices.

My mother used to say that some people could have a bargain get up and bite them in the butt and they wouldn’t see it.   Don’t be that person.

To pay 1.50 for a can of veggies one week, .50 the next week, and 1.50 the third week is just plain Stupid unless you live in a fourth floor walk up in NYC.   You are much better off buying three when they are .50.   It’s just plain simple logic.   Moderation is the key.   If you buy a bunch of things that your family doesn’t eat a lot of and they go to waste, its not smart either.
I read a interesting article on facebook by Taste of Home, that identified things that we have been throwing away that are good a long time after their pull dates.   Eggs and yogurt come to mind.


Using as many bits of leftovers as you can can save a lot of money .  Its a mindset.   My Dad used to say the more you do, the more you want to do.   You just have to take that first step.   Motivation is a strong word.

We eat on less than four dollars a person per day.   It took a long arduous path to get to this point.   There were hits and misses...a lot of misses.   We struggled through cooking soy beans and them still being Little Rock’s.....my experience with  lentils weren’t much better.   I succeeded with bean sprouts only to be told they were dangerous.   But, we succeeded in the end.   We eat good hamburger, boneless skinless chicken breast, pork loin , and salmon.  No, Virginia, we don't eat beans every meal.   LOL.  ( a take from the Santa Claus letter ) .

Simplify, lower costs, and always have food in the house.  

Four plus one is five....four people, one meal, five bucks.

No food is going to do your family good if you feed it to the garbage disposal.

A stockbroker’s concept is to buy low and sell high.   Buying your groceries is no different.Buy when the price is low, and eat when the price is high.   Think of it as making a profit.