A New Year Means New Savings on Groceries

Feb. 14, 2007— -- January always seems to be the time of year to turn over a new leaf and get a fresh start in the New Year. Many of us make resolutions to adopt a healthier lifestyle, save money, and get more organized. Unfortunately, most of us get discouraged and give up on our resolutions before the month is over. If one of your resolutions is to save more money on the grocery bill, try these easy tips.

First off, you do not have to spend hours a week snipping and organizing coupons to save money on groceries. Follow these 10 simple steps and you will put a major dent in your grocery tab, saving you as much as 50 percent.

Go to the grocery store as infrequently as possible. The easiest way to overspend on groceries is going to the store too often. I doubt anyone who stops at the store for one item leaves with one item. Although most shoppers do make one big shopping trip per week, they usually have at least two or three additional trips during the week to pick up unplanned items, which can wreak havoc on the grocery bill. Determine a reasonable goal, such as shopping once a week, and work to get everything you need in that one trip. If you run out of a basic item before the week is over, try to live without it for a day or two.

Plan meals for the week before you make your shopping list. I'm not suggesting you build detailed gourmet menu plans for every day of the week. Instead, make sure you have basics on hand to create a week's worth of meals. Build in at least one night a week to have leftovers, or create a new meal with leftover ingredients. Write the meals planned on a piece of paper and post it on the refrigerator to remember what you have.

Use the grocery store advertising circular to plan your meals. Instead of selecting menus and buying the items at the store regardless of their price, start by building your meals around the rock-bottom sale items featured on the cover of your store's grocery ad. Paying half for main dish ingredients like meat, chicken and fish will put a major dent in your grocery spending.

Use grocery coupons when your items are on sale. The average coupon shopper will flip through the Sunday coupon circular each week, cut out a few coupons for items they may use, and throw the rest of the circular away. Most likely, they will use the coupons immediately for their items. However, those items may go on sale later, and using the coupon at that time means the shopper could have bought the item for free. Expert coupon shoppers hold on to their coupons until their items go on sale. Matching the sale items with coupons available can be tedious for most shoppers. Smart coupon users take advantage of grocery shopping Web sites that do the work of matching sales and coupons together. You can find shopping lists of bargains for dozens of grocery stores across the country as well as national drugstore chains like Walgreens and CVS at www.couponmom.com.

Save all the newspaper grocery coupons. You should save the entire coupon circular, because some brands you typically wouldn't buy may end up being free with a coupon a few weeks after the coupon comes out. At that point, you might be willing to try a new brand. Use the Virtual Coupon Organizer at www.couponmom.com to find the coupons you need, when you want them. Simply write the date on the front of the circular when it comes out, and save all of your circulars in a box. The Virtual Coupon Organizer and the store grocery deals lists reference coupons by date, so simply cut out the coupons you need before you shop (in just a few minutes a week). You will most likely find free items every week, and if you don't need them, you can always donate the item to charity and help another family at no cost. Keep a box in your house or garage for charity items, and when it fills up you'll have a great donation for your next food drive at no cost.

Stock up on your common items when they are at rock-bottom prices. Pay attention to how frequently your common items go on sale at your stores and make sure you buy enough to last between sales. For example, boneless chicken breast goes on sale at either one of my grocery stores every other week, at $2 per pound at its lowest price. Its regular price ranges from $4 to $5 per pound. Because I use that item a few times a week, making sure I have two weeks of chicken breasts in my freezer insures that I never have to pay full price. If I were to buy it weekly, regardless of its price, I would pay an average of $3 per pound. Stocking up on just one ingredient saves my household about $250 per year as compared to buying it each week regardless of its price. Identify five to 10 higher-priced items that you buy frequently and stock up on them to put a real dent in your grocery spending.

Stick to your shopping list. Although this seems obvious, impulse spending at the grocery store can blow your budget. Grocery stores are experts at putting attractive and appealing displays in visible places. If possible, leave your children at home when you shop to avoid their impulse purchases. If you must bring your children, set up some sort of reward system (a fun activity or the free cookie at the bakery) if they do not ask for any unplanned purchases. Make shopping fun for them by letting them pick out the flavor or variety of some of your planned purchases.

Be brand flexible. If you routinely buy the same brands regardless of their price, ask yourself if you are doing that out of habit or true quality preference. Consider trying a comparable brand if it is a bargain. Try store brands as well, particularly if your store has a store brand guarantee. Many stores will refund your money if their brand does not meet your expectations, or they will even give you the name brand item at no cost.

Be store flexible. If there is more than one grocery store in your vicinity, consider shopping at different stores when their advertising circulars have your items on sale. Going to more than one store in the same week to buy each of their best bargains will save more money. However, if you do not have enough time to shop around, selecting the store with the best bargains each week will help save money.

Cook once and eat twice. Always have an extra meal in the freezer to avoid having to grab takeout meals just because you don't have a meal planned. Eating out for fun is one thing, but grabbing lower-quality food at higher prices for convenience can blow your food budget. When you make a pot of soup, chili, or a casserole, make twice as much and freeze enough for an extra meal. Having a healthy meal ready to go will save your budget and your waistline, taking care of two of your resolutions at once!

Stephanie Nelson shares her savings tips as a regular contributor on ABC News' "Good Morning America." You can find more of her savings tips in her book "The Greatest Secrets of the Coupon Mom" and on her Web site at www.couponmom.com.