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More than just offering nutrition, it offers an important way to connect with others and connect to our culture and heritage.
The rising cost of food makes it challenging to stay within a monthly budget every month and affects our quality of life. So how can you make your dollar stretch when the cost of food just seems to get higher?
- Shop in Season: When shopping for fruits and vegetables, try to shop for in-season produce when possible. Items will be more affordable when there is a larger supply available to grocery stores. For instance, during the summer months, you are more likely to find deals on corn, watermelon, tomatoes and strawberries. Curious what’s in season right now? Check out this seasonal food guide and start saving on your grocery bill today!
- Check the Ads: Staple items like bread, rice, pasta, eggs and milk are all significantly more expensive than they used to be. Check your weekly ads to see where these staple items are on sale, and plan your meals around other items that are priced within your budget.
- Plan Ahead and Meal Plan: After checking your weekly ads, you can plan your meals for the week. Start by seeing what’s already in your pantry and refrigerator at home, and try to find ways to maximize grocery items across meals. For instance, can you utilize an ingredient across several meals throughout the week?
- Make a List: When creating your weekly meal plan, write out a list of items that you need to buy. When you arrive at the store, only purchase the items on your list.
- Think Ahead Before Buying in Bulk: Non-perishable items like toilet paper, paper towels and canned food are ideal items to buy in bulk since they won’t expire or rot by the time you have time to use them. While it might be tempting to buy the giant bag of fresh spinach, try and think through your weekly meal plan to see if you can realistically use it all before it goes bad.
- Freeze In-Season Items That Are Perishable: Want to buy fruits and vegetables in bulk to save money, but can’t finish them quickly? Try freezing them! You can also buy already-frozen foods including frozen produce and meat at the market. While frozen foods may not last quite as long as canned food, they do last longer than fresh foods and generally tend to be more nutritious than canned foods.When you freeze your food or buy frozen food, make sure to label the containers with the purchase date, so that way you can remember to use the food within a few months so it doesn’t go to waste.
- Buy Generic Brands: Buying the store’s in-house brand can save you money. Some may worry that the store’s in-house brand is of lesser quality, but many times it’s manufactured in the same warehouse as the big name brands. For instance, did you know that Trader Joe’s pita chips are Stacy’s Pita Chips? Tyson chicken produces chicken for the Great Value brand sold at Walmart, and Costco’s Kirkland Signature Coffee is roasted by Starbucks.
- Consider Going Meat-Free for a Couple Meals: One of the easiest ways to stretch your monthly budget is to go meat-free once a week or more. Compared to the high cost of meat, replacements like tofu, beans and lentils will only cost you a couple dollars.
- Maximize Your EBT/CalFresh Rewards at the Farmers Market: Most local farmers markets will match your CalFresh benefits, which doubles your shopping budget. For instance, if you use $10 worth of CalFresh benefits, you will get an additional $10, giving you a total of $20!
Be Wary of Misleading Labels and Marketing: Gluten free! Antibiotic free! Food trends and misleading labels made it confusing when shopping. It’s hard to know which foods are the best choice for you and your family. Manufacturers may add these types of labels to their products as a way to try and sell more products or be in line with the latest trends. Learn what different distinctions mean and what is required by law For instance, you may see chicken labels that state their product is antibiotic-free, when in fact all chicken sold in the United States is antibiotic-free.