How to Combat Rising Food Costs Before, During, and After the Grocery Store

Grocery shopping. Gotta admit, I don’t do it often. My partner is nice enough to hit the store most weeks, so when news reports kept saying food prices are going up, I generally ignored them. But, it’s getting harder to ignore…

Per the USDA: “In 2022, food-at-home [grocery store] prices are predicted to increase between 8.5 and 9.5 percent, and food-away-from-home [restaurant] prices are predicted to increase between 6.0 and 7.0 percent”. That’s a lot. That’s almost another $1 for every $10 you spend. Compare that to prices in 2020, “food-at-home prices increased 3.5 percent and food-away-from-home prices 3.4 percent” and “food-at-home prices increased 3.5 percent and food-away-from-home prices increased 4.5 percent” in 2021.

Additionally, some individual foods are up even more than the average, a lot more. The USDA is estimating a 13% increase in poultry and 20% increase in eggs. Egg! Which used to be my go-to cheap protein source. Maybe not anymore…

So, time to trim the fat (get it? Ha!). Predictions are the prices might level off in about 6-9 months, but who knows. In the meantime, time to start saving some money.

Before You Hit the Store

Make a list.

I know, I know, you’ve heard this one. But it’s TRUE! Going to the grocery store, list in hand, helps keep you from spending a lot on foods you don’t need. Plus, it saves you from forgetting something and having to make another trip (and we all know we don’t want to waste gas!)

Take a peek at the weekly ad for your favorite store, and try to build some meals around foods that are on sale.
Map out your weekly dinners (and even lunches and breakfast). This can save you from take out, fast food, or just time running to the store again.
Reverse shop.

Check your fridge and pantry before you hit the store. Don’t buy apples when you already have them; they’ll likely go bad before you use them all up. Have some broccoli in your fridge on its last leg? Plan a dinner in the near future to use it up.

At the Grocery Store

You’ve heard “Don’t go hungry” but have you heard “Go Alone”.

Both your appetite and people can cause you to add more to your cart than originally planned. Everything looks good when you’re hungry, if it’s on the list or not. And going with kids, a friend, or a spouse means it’s just more eyes spying things you want, but don’t need. You can only say no so many times…

Shop in season, if it’s out of season, stock up on canned or frozen fruits and vegetables.

It’s summer now, so lots of tomatoes, corn, and lettuce are in stores, and when things are plentiful, they tend to be less expensive. If things are out of season (think winter squash, brussel sprouts, or kale) canned and frozen fruits and veggies are just as healthy (possibly even healthier since they’re picked and processed at the peak of freshness). I love stocking up on peppers and onions, broccoli, and frozen berries. Canned potatoes, beans, and tomatoes are always in my pantry.

Time to think about meat alternatives.

The foods with the highest price increases this year are most of our animal products- beef, pork, poultry. No need to give them up, but adding foods like beans, nuts, seeds, tofu, lentils, etc, to your diet can keep your protein intake up and your spending down. Use them in place of, or in addition to, meat or poultry so you don’t need to buy as much.

Be flexible so you can buy what’s on sale.

Instead of me writing salmon on my list for Wednesday nights dinner, I just write fish. If it’s taco Tuesday, see what is least expensive while you’re in store: ground beef vs ground turkey vs shrimp (hint: you can find frozen shrimp on sale, which is great since you can use exactly how much you want and reseal the bag!). If you like vanilla yogurt, get the brand that’s cheapest. Pick whatever cereal is cheapest if you like a few different ones. Don’t get hung up on a specific item (asparagus) when you can just say “veggie” and get whatever is the best buy.

Buy in bulk.

It’s a great idea for things like oats, rice, pasta, cereal since they are things that won’t go bad too quickly and it’s typically cheaper to buy a large bag than a few small ones (but see below- unit pricing, because it’s not alway the case). You can also sign up for a warehouse membership (like Sam’s Club, BJ’s, or Costco) to help you get a lot of items in bulk, but it does cost money upfront. Plus, for smaller family units, the food might go bad before you can use it all, though one solution is buddying up and splitting the big pack of strawberries, or the 2 gallons of milk.

Buy plain.

The more a food is processed, the more it’s going to cost. Plain brown rice costs less than minute brown rice, which costs less than fancy flavored rice. Side note: This is healthier as well, since you’ll be able to control what goes into the food like sodium.

Buy store brands.

Typically the store brand is the exact same thing as the name brand, just without all the colorful marketing (think cereal with mascots). You might not be able to give up all your name brands, but even switching over a few can add up!

Do the leg work yourself.

Already cut up fruit is much easier, as are the 6 ounce yogurts, but that convenience tends to cost you. Try and make your own snack bags of chips when you get home in reusable snack bags. Not only will you save money, but you’ll cut down on trash and help the planet! Win win.

After the Grocery Store

Follow through with your meal planning.

It won’t save you any money if you buy ingredients to make dinner; then, they go bad while you order take out, or meet friends at a restaurant. I’m not saying you shouldn’t do take out or meet friends, just incorporate those meals into your meal planning so you don’t over buy. (Bonus tip from a friend: If you do miss a meal you were planning, make it anyway and freeze it!)

Last in first out.

That means, when you’re putting food away, the new food goes in the back of the pantry or fridge, and the older food moves to the front. This keeps food from expiring in the back of your cabinet unknown to you.

Have a “USE ME” bin in the fridge.

Similar to the last in, first out idea, designate a spot in your fridge for items that need to be eaten in the next 1-2 days. I do this with leftovers (we’re notorious for packing up the leftovers, only for them to get lost in the back of the fridge to be thrown out 4 days later), fruits, vegetables, anything about to expire. It makes it so simple to find a snack or a vegetable for dinner if you look there first and you throw out less (or…maybe nothing! That’s my goal)

How about some other tips:

Ever Hear of the Unit Price?

Instead of pulling out your phone to calculate which food is cheaper, the information is right there for you! The unit price is the best way to compare two different sized items. The retail price is the cost of the item; the unit price tells you the cost per ounce, pound, gram, etc. It makes it very simple to know you’re getting the cheaper item (be aware, the larger size is not always cheaper, especially when something is on sale)

Have you tried ordering grocery delivery, or pickup?

Hear me out. I stick with my list, hit the register, only to be shocked (seriously, every time) by how much my total is. In comes shopping online. I am fortunate enough to have a grocery store that offers delivery or pick up. The nice feature is that you can sometimes get a delivery discount for “odd” delivery times- like a Wednesday or Thursday night. Or a discount for a larger delivery window. Suddenly my delivery fee is $3 instead of $8 and you know I would have bought more than $3 worth of impulse buys. Both options allow me to watch the total of the order accumulate as I go. Sometimes I take out a few items I can get next week to keep it in check. I shop the deals/sales/coupons and make sure they come up before I check out. I know exactly how much I’m spending.

Rewards

There are lots of ways to get money back after shopping.

Some apps give you cash back for uploading your receipts (Ibotta or Fetch for example).
If you shop frequently at a store, sign up for their rewards program. Some give you gas, cash back, more coupons…. It all helps.
Check your credit card. You could try a rewards credit card like Whole Foods or Amazon. Other credit cards let you select what category you want to earn rewards for, so pick groceries instead of restaurants (if that works to your advantage).

I hope this helps, even a little bit. These tips can not only help cut a few dollars off your bill, but are healthy and help reduce food waste, triple score!

Did I miss anything? Comment below so we can share everyone’s smart tips!

Stay Happy, Stay Healthy

This blog was written by Chris Henigan MS, RD, LDN, co-founder of Simple Start Nutrition. For more blog posts and nutrition information follow @simplestartnutrition on Instagram and Facebook. Also feel free to contact us, by visiting our website (simplestartnutrition.com) to schedule an appointment to discuss your nutrition related needs. We’re here to help.

References

https://www.ers.usda.gov/data-products/food-price-outlook/summary-findings/