And old saying that saves a lot of money, The Kroger stores have been running three and four day sales that are really good prices. If there are things that you use on a regular basis. It is a good idea to buy them in bulk. Most of the time their limit is five. This week it is bacon and la Croix water. I buy sparkling water out of our entertainment budget, but allow myself one glass a day. Some days I just drink ice water, And usually I find quarts cheaper.
Eating on four dollars a day is totally believable, Actually the SNAP average on Washington is 4.25 a day.
It is not what you buy as much as it is when and where you buy it.
Knowing what is the RBP on the things you buy on a regular basis is a good start in s t r e t c h I n g your food dollar. Make a list of your basic foods you buy on a regular basis, Que this with the 7-10 meals you make on a regular basis from inexpensive sources of protein. Buy your protein on a rotation basis using the ads to pick a meat that is a so called loss leader. This is another easy way to save money and reduce waste. Buy in bulk and portion control in meal sized bags and freeze.
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.
Know when something is really on sale, not just for sale. Not everything in a store ad is on a real sale at a reduced price. Some things are just featured items. Checking if there are coupons to go with a sale item helps too although coupons are becoming few and far between. If it is a shelf stable item or a freezer one, and you use that item on a regular basis, consider buying up to a months supply. This saves time, money, and gives you the luxury of always having food in the house in case of an emergency.
No food is going to do your family good of you are feeding it to the garbage disposal.
Buying something the kids should eat, but won’t, does not save money. Buying organic vegetables that go bad a day after you get them in the house, is not saving money, Organic ups your cost of that food up to sixty percent. That’s quite a hit on a four dollar a day budget.
All good quotes.
On another note, the quote out there that says Americans waste forty percent of our food took on a new meaning when I happened on to a video recently. I assumed that people were insuating that we as cooks were wasting that much. In actuality, it also means that the farmers send food to the landfill and plow some food under becaise it isn’t perfect in size or it didn’t fit into the bag correctly.
That being said, it is a good idea to try to incorporate little bits of things onto another dish, or morphing last nights leftovers into something new.
Making best use of what you have is always a good thing .
