Affording groceries during times of rapid price increases
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During the past two years alone, the price of some household staples such as bread, milk, and eggs have increased in price by as much as 69%*, while the median household income has only increased 1%*. In this video, I discuss these increases and offer tips to help your family cope with the rapidly increasing cost of groceries.
As I’ve found myself watching Youtube far more than I do television, I am going to start expanding my youtube channel, so please be sure and visit me on youtube by clicking here and be sure and click the red “subscribe” button!
References for this video:
- Soaring Food Prices: Compare Cost Increases
- Food Prices Soar as Incomes Stand Still
- Milk Prices Could Go up 60 Cents a Gallon
- Rice: The Ultimate Budget Extender
- Money Saving Tip: Rethink Bulk
- Come Home to Supper
“American families have always shown remarkable resiliency, or flexible adjustment to natural, economic, and social challenges. Their strengths resemble the elasticity of a spider web, a gull’s skillful flow with the wind, the regenerating power of perennial grasses, the cooperation of an ant colony, and the persistence of a stream carving canyon rocks. These are not the strengths of fixed monuments but living organisms. This resilience is not measured by wealth, muscle or efficiency but by creativity, unity, and hope. Cultivating these family strengths is critical to a thriving human community.”~Ben Silliman
I have been stocking up on staples for years. I have a lot of beans, rice, sugar, cake mixes, canned vegis and fruit and tomato products and others. If I had to we could eat out of the pantry for 6 months to a year. Also, I keep all the different flours and grains that I use in the freezer. I take them out when I need them and they don’t go bad. That way I can have all the different types to use when I want and don’t waste them. Keep up the great work Christy.
Great tips! I use most of those tips myself, so I have very little to add. I will say that I always shop the CVS circular. Their sales are often really good. Recently I got one of the “good” brands of tuna (we don’t eat off-brand tuna, although we do off brand about 90+% of our food) for 77 cents a can. That is just one example. So I guess my tip is to try stores that you don’t think of as “grocery stores” for their specials. You might be surprised! I’ve gotten excellent buys on shampoo, pasta sauce, paper towels, off-brand zip locs, dishwashing liquid, and many other items at CVS. My husband takes Osteo Bi Flex and fish oil (doctor’s orders), and I only buy it when CVS has the buy one, get one free sale on. I always get them cheaper than they are at discount stores when I do this.
I certainly try to keep to my budget, but it is very difficult when you have food allergies. My husband is allergic to rice of all things. I don’t have to worry about the price of milk as he is allergic to that as well, but almond milk is just as expensive. Lord knows I try! Now that WalMart matches all grocery ads, that has helped. I try to make my list based on what is on sale before going shopping ’cause I don’t want to be one of those people with all of their ads in hand trying to figure out how it all works while shopping. Get in, get out, get done!
Hey Christy!
I was so glad to watch and subscribe to your YOU TUBE videos! Love Ya Girl!
We have a garden every year this past one was a 50×80 one that I had all kinds of veggies: okra (YUM!!) yellow & butternut squash, all for colors of peppers, jalapenos, tomatoes, sweet corn (500-600 ears were gathered and put away!) beets, zucchini, onions, salad greens, beans, cucumbers on which I made 9 5 gallon buckets of 14 day pickles with! When I got finished with All the veggies I wanted, I also gave away tons of them to friends and church members. So I spread the “love” around! I also buy in bulk at Sam’s Clubs, and we have meatless nights with beans and cornbread—YUM!! When we go out to eat, we bring home at least 1/2 or more and we have that for another night so what we spend doesn’t sound a bad and we enjoy it at least 1 or 2 times again. I don’t miss having sodas (haven’t had them in 13 years now!) We either had sweet tea or water. But now we have gone ALL WATER….. I canned ALL my veggies, froze some, buy meat in bulk and divide it up in smaller packages. I do make my own bread also….. I hate that things are going up but hope that we can continue to grow all our food this summer. Sure tastes better as I know what it in it!! Thanks again for your help on things Christy and Can’t wait for your next video!!
The Kroger where I live does not accept coupons…..we only have one store that does, but their price is way too high, even with coupons…..and I just heard today that milk has gone up over .60 cents….what are people going to do ???? I may just quit drinking milk…..never really liked it anyways…..but family with children, need milk……gardening and canning is not an option for a lot of seniors who live in a senior apt. you need land to farm…..we live a good hr. drive to large store like Meijer, Sam’s Club, Jungle Jim’s, Whole Foods, etc…..we have Kroger and Save-a-lot, and Walmart here….so that isn’t much of a choice and Walmart is so expensive here…..and it is not a full supermarket…..the only kind of meat you can get is packaged…..they do not have a meat counter where you can get a few hotdogs or a small roast, etc. then they have a deli with lunch meat only…with Dr. Oz and other doctors saying the processed meat and cheeses are bad for you….yet you see people still buy them……
Thank you, Christy!
Additional tips that I’ve implemented over the past few years include –
buying bread from the bread outlets. I save a ton and freeze the bread or keep it in the refrigerator.
I take advantage of Walmart’s price matching policy. I gather all the various store ads and look for those Items I want. I buy my fresh produce this way and only buy what’s on sale.
Finally, I maintain a shopping list with the help of a phone app and only shop once a week.
Please keep up the tips.
I never buy bread crumbs I use the heels of the loaves for that pulsing them in a food processor then toast them in a skillet with garlic powder, Italian seasoning or even just toast and leave them plain. I save the heels in the freezer and make batches to freeze in zip bags. Bread crumbs basically for free as most people throw the heels away.
Great idea – thanks!
Great idea Marsha!!!
Marsha that is a great idea!
We are a family of 4 living on one income. We live in a rural area and so the only store close is a Dollar General and a Food For Less. I have learned what the lowest price an item is going to be and I buy only when they are on sale. My husband and I hunt and fish so we grind our own burger with the venison and always have plenty of fish. Also have a garden in summer. My Granny taught me a recipe that only has SR flour and milk, then you fry in a bit of oil. We call these “river biscuits” since she made them for us grandkids when we stayed with them at their river camp as kids. It is served with syrup and can be made for breakfast when money is tight. Also make my son homemade “lunchables” by using a plastic childs medicine dose cup to cut out little circles in the bologna or lunch meat, add some crackers and cheese, which is much cheaper than the storebought lunchables. I also freeze up my own mini pizzas with homemade sauce and cheese, on bagels.
If you shop at Dollar General during the week and even buy just a 25 cent piece of candy then your receipt will have a $5 coupon to be used Saturday in that week. I always do that if i have no milk or bread and then I get my milk and bread for 25 cents as i use the coupon on the candy receipt.
Never bought milk or bread for .25 cents at any DG store.
I think she buys milk and bread on Saturday and uses her 5.00 off coupon that she got earlier in the week when she just bought a 25 cent piece of candy (to get the coupon)
You are right Shari I didn’t put that into a correct phrase. Thanks Shari for helping me explain. If I do not need milk or bread then I will get canned tuna or salmon as they too are a great budget stretcher.
Joanna,
Will you please share your recipe for river biscuits.
Thank you,
Deb
I grew up on what you call river biscuits except we called it hoecake and made just one big biscuit that was skillet size. Loved it. I remember being glad to have that and pinto beans for Thanksgiving dinner. We never went hungry cause that was always available. I even cooked on a wood stove back tlhen. I was just a young’un then. Thanks for the reminding me.