Grocery Budget Makeover - I saved $25 At the Grocery Store Today
Recently, I’ve written that we have reviewed our expenses for 2006 and discovered that the cost of nearly everything had risen. I’ve decided to tackle the grocery budget and have set a new monthly goal for total grocery expenses.
Yesterday, I went through and took an inventory of my pantry, freezer, and refrigerator to see what items I have. Then, I compiled a detailed menu for the upcoming week writing down each meal for each day. After the list was made, I developed a grocery list of the items that I needed to purchase. I wrote the grocery list and organized it according to the layout of my grocery store, starting at aisle 1 and working my way through the store. I found that by making my list with this method, I can save time when I am grocery shopping.
I had previously gotten the current week’s sale flyer for my grocery store, which is Publix. This is a grocery store chain based in the South. They were having a very large Buy 1, Get 1 free sale which started last Thursday (January 11) and goes until next Wednesday (January 17, 2007). Publix had also some special coupon books located in the front of the store, and I picked up a few of those the other day as well.
I was able to combine some of the coupons from the coupon book with the Buy 1, Get 1 free items which made the great bargains even better. For example, Mott’s Apple Juice was Buy 1, Get 1 free and I had a coupon for $1 off a bottle of Mott’s Apple Juice. The regular price for each bottle of apple juice was $2.65, and the total price I paid for the 2 bottles of Mott’s apple juice was $1.65. I found several other similar deals where I could combine the Buy 1 Get 1 free sale with coupons. The total savings on my grocery receipt was $25. I was very happy to see this!
Overall, I have planned to make more budget friendly meals this week, including baking more homemade muffins and breads, as well as meat-free dishes including homemade pizza and bean burritos. Our budget goal this month is $500 for grocery expenses (family of 5). I am optimistic we can make this number.
Thanks for the great post and tip about sales at Publix - we have a publix near buy but I usually shop at Kroger because I assume it is less expensive. I’ll have to check out Publix sales this week.
I’m an avid coupon clipper… do you happen to know if websites that offer coupons are worth it, or will my Sunday paper coupons be enough?
Glad I found your site… its very informative and helpful.
[...] We’re working hard to whittle our grocery bill down. I put a lot of time and effort into finding the bargains, sales and deals but there is nothing more frustrating than purchasing a box of cereal and having it consumed in one day. If you have kids, you know what I mean. So we analyzed the situation and decided that in addition to being a little more creative with meal planning and shopping the sales, we needed to start enforcing the rule of “how much is in a serving?”  [...]
In San Diego the grocery stores have recently instituted a policy of enforcing the buy 1 get 1 free rule. For many years if you bought only 1 you got the discount price anyway, now they will charge you the full price if you only buy 1. If this is legal then why did Kroger, Vons repeal this rule in 199 and re-enforce it now. Are they not going to sell 2 anyway. THIS RULE DISCRIMINATES AGAINST POOR PEOPLE AND THOSE WHO DO NOT OWN A FREEZER Hello Wal-Mart Supercenter
I work at Publix, and I’ve found that by stockpiling the BOGO’s each week, and the loss leaders, and also shopping places like Sav-a-lot and Big Lots, I can pare my bill for myself alone down to $25 a week. Of course, that means cooking my own meals, not eating out, and taking my own lunch to work.
BTW, Publix has at least 10 or more BOGO’s each week.