How to Stretch the Food Budget

By The News Tribune, Tacoma, Wash.

Jun. 15–With people’s budgets stressed by $4-per-gallon gas and increasing food prices, The News Tribune asked readers for their tips on saving money on food. Dozens responded via e-mail. Here are excerpts from some of the South Sound’s bargain hunters.

Marion and Morf Morford of Tacoma

The North End Tacoma couple try to stay away from packaged foods, instead eating mostly fresh produce and dried beans and peas. They frequent the Grocery Outlet and McGregor’s Natural Foods, as well as local farmers markets. The two reserve the upscale Metropolitan Market for select items they can’t find anywhere else.

Amy Kliewer of Tacoma

Kliewer learned to shop frugally when her four children lived at home. All but one are now out of the house, but she still hunts for a good bargain. She buys her bread at bakery outlets, and she scans grocery advertisements to find the best deals. She heads to Grocery Outlet on Valentine’s Day and Christmas for fancy chocolates to use as gifts. And she cooks mainly from scratch instead of relying on prepackaged food items.

Becky Foutz of Buckley

Foutz frequents fresh-fruit produce stands and checks fliers from grocery stores. “Fred Meyer always has the best price on bananas and orange juice,” Foutz said.

Alicia Patterson of Tacoma

Patterson lives with her husband and a “voracious 2-year-old.” She frequents Costco for toilet paper, dishwasher soap, laundry soap, napkins, paper towels and organic cereal. WinCo is where she goes for everything else.

“Typically I buy all my food staples there, i.e., canned goods, noodles, cheese, spices, etc,” Patterson wrote. “WinCo is also one of the two places where I buy meat. I stock up on chicken, ground turkey, and sometimes pork. You can always find chicken there for less than $1 a pound (my last trip it was 98 cents).”

Patterson also has her milk delivered: “I used to go every week or two to get ‘just milk,’ but it never turned into ‘just milk.’ I was surprised that having your milk delivered really did not cost any more than what I was already paying. It saved my time, money, gas, and some sanity.”

Robin Echtle of Tacoma

Echtle shops at the Grocery Outlet on a weekly basis. She offered her grocery shopping plan with the advice, “Have a plan, work the plan.”

1. Review ads in paper.

2. Cut coupons for the stuff already on the list or on the “stock up when it’s on sale” list.

3. Visit Grocery Outlet.

4. Then Fred Meyer.

5. Then Metropolitan Market, for the stuff no one else carries.

Marsha Osborn

“I buy the store brand frequently, and I have never been unhappy with those items,” Osborn said. “What difference does it make what brand of mushroom soup I use to make a casserole? Why not use a brand that is less then a dollar versus almost $2 for the same thing?”

Cynthia Woods of Bonney Lake

When buying meat, Woods first looks in the mark-down meat section. Fred Meyer and Top Food often have good bargains, she said. “If I can buy it in bulk, I’ll do it,” she said.

Linda Witt of Roy

“I will buy large quantities and portion out what I will use for a meal. I freeze the rest,” Witt said. “As for eggs, I find that the mixed eggs (like Wilcox sells) come out cheaper than buying the whole eggs…. We eat a lot of soups and casseroles, as they use less meat and feed more. These are some tight times, and I am afraid that they are going to get tighter. I will be looking into growing my own food, too.”

Kathy Holt of Tacoma

“I have always looked for the best price on food,” Holt said. “One place not so well-known is the Dollar Store. They carry fresh fruit and vegetables at a bargain.”

Lynette Scheidt

Scheidt finds coupons online for deals at restaurants. To save on produce, she took out two flower gardens and planted blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, lettuce, carrots, cilantro, asparagus, garlic, peas, cucumbers, zucchini, an apple tree and a cherry tree.

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Copyright (c) 2008, The News Tribune, Tacoma, Wash.

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