Making Ends Meet: Reducing your grocery spending while still eating what you love

Groceries are probably taking a large bite out of your monthly budget. But, WINK News has five tips for you to reduce your spending while still eating the foods you love.

Experts say that unless we’re paying close attention, we often spend more on food than we think. But, with a bit of planning, we can keep more in our pockets while enjoying our favorite meals.

Kumiko Love is a financial counselor at TheBudgetMom.com. “Our food spending is the silent killer of our budgets.”

Love recommends the five following steps to reduce your spending on food.

First, before you even enter your store of choice, check your inventory in the fridge, pantry and freezer. “I pick out recipes based on what I already have at home and I create that list of what I still need to get,” said Love.

That way, you’ll only buy what you need instead of what you’re tempted to buy.

The second tip – shop from home. Avoid the temptation of going to the grocery store altogether.  Instead, shop online for groceries and use either the pickup or delivery option.  It’s much easier to delete items from your virtual cart if you’re over budget.

“But it also allows you to compare pricing very easily because it puts all similar food categories together,” she said.

Another tip, don’t just check the price but check the price per unit. Many times, it’s cheaper to buy items whole instead of buying pre-cut or pre-made products.

Tip number four is to use loyalty apps. Join your preferred grocery store’s loyalty program, follow them on social media and download their apps to find coupons and other deals.

Last but not least, buy generic products over brand names. “Store brands or generic brands are a lot of the times made in the same facility as the brand names that we gravitate towards,” said Love.