2 families put grocery bills on a diet

— -- Americans are facing supermarket sticker shock. At a time when salaries are stagnating, families are seeing household food budgets rising. And it's not expected to get better any time soon. Next year, food prices are expected to increase 7% to 9%, says Bill Lapp, principal at Advanced Economic Solutions in Omaha.

As part of our Frugal Family Challenge series, USA TODAY and ABC's Good Morning America Weekend challenged two families to cut their grocery bills by 15% over one month — and eat healthier. With the help of Maile Carpenter, editor-in-chief of Food Network Magazine, both families exceeded the goal. The Jones family slashed their food bills by 28%; the Ramsays cut theirs by 19%. Here's how:

The Ramsay family

Before the Frugal Family Challenge began, Tania Ramsay of Miami knew that she was spending too much at the grocery store. With two teenage daughters, Stephanie and Jesse, she wanted to tighten her food budget and save more money for their college education.

She knew that too often she bought name-brand products, especially bread and cereal. They relied on canned pasta.

"They would buy 10 cans of Chef Boyardee because it was on sale," says Maile Carpenter, editor-in-chief of Food Network Magazine. "It seems cheaper."

But Carpenter showed how the family can buy a box of pasta and other ingredients to make a homemade dinner that will taste better and be less expensive. "We're eating a lot more pasta," Tania says. "And now we're doing it from scratch, and that is better than getting processed food."

The family continues to find ways to cut costs and eat healthier. They are reading the labels more closely. They buy generic brands of bread and cereal. And they no longer buy soft drinks for the girls.

Instead, they are buying orange juice and milk. "When we see cookies, we just pass them by," Tania says. Instead, they will buy granola bars so the girls can have a healthier snack.

Tania has joined a membership warehouse store, where she can find many bargains. Now the family can plan ahead, buy products in bulk and spend less. Recently, for example, they bought four gallons of orange juice for $9.99, or about $2.50 each. That compares with the $3.99 that they formerly paid for one gallon of juice at their local supermarket.