Thanks to shrinkflation and rising product prices, our grocery runs are getting more expensive. But Meghan Birch, a stay-at-home mom of five with a husband and two pets, says she’s figured out some easy ways to save at the supermarket.
Her biggest change has been only grocery shopping once a month, which she says saves her thousands of dollars a year. “There is something about going to the grocery store often that for us was just a trap to buy more things that we didn't need and to not really use the things that we already had,” Birch explains. She says their family now spends about $1,000 a month on food, house supplies and pet food and that they easily save $300 to $500 by only shopping monthly.
Beyond her once a month grocery store trips, this is how Birch saves on food costs:
- Big meal planning - When she sat down to create a savings plan for the month, Birch says she focused on “foods that we really like to eat.” So she tries to get most of that in her huge monthly haul and she separates items and freezes them so she has the ingredients she needs when it’s time to make meals.
- Realistic family eating habits - Do you have things in your fridge that often don’t get used or food in the pantry that keeps getting pushed to the back? Birch advises taking an honest look at what your family actually eats and making a point not to buy the items they never end up eating.
- Shop on fully stocked days - If you’re not running to the grocery store regularly, you want to hit it up when they have everything you want and need on the shelves. That means knowing what days your store stocks things so you can make that one monthly trip and not have to return for missing items they didn’t have.
Visit Good Morning America to read the full article for yourself