ThirdAge - Money Newsletter - Winning the Grocery Game!

Groceries are one of the few flexible items in a family's budget, but it can sometimes be challenging to find creative ways to save on regular family food costs. Try some simple tips to help cut grocery expenses:

1. Plan ahead whether you're cooking your meals ahead of time to store in the freezer, or just planning your menu and shopping lists in advance.

2. Set your grocery budget and then make sure your menus and grocery lists fit your budget.

3. Plan your meals around items you already have on hand and around the sales flyers from your local grocery stores.

4. Shop with cash. This is a surprisingly effective means of staying on budget. Writing a check somehow seems less concrete than paying cash.

5. Keep a running total of how much you're spending at the store. If you find that you're about to spend more than you had budgeted for that trip, put items back and re-shop for better bargains.

6. Keep a price diary. List all regularly purchased items (food, toiletries, paper products, etc.) in a notebook small enough to slip into your purse or pocket when you go shopping. When you're browsing through store advertisements or doing your actual shopping, write down (in pencil!) the lowest price you see for each item listed in your price diary (change the prices when you see lower prices than you've already written in the notebook). This way you'll know for sure if a sale price is low enough to make it worth stocking up.

7. A simple rule of thumb when you're shopping: Look high, look low. Stores often place the most expensive items at eye level and all the generic and store brands on the top and bottom of shelves.

8. Stores often place their advertised specials at the end of aisles. The advertised special might be a good buy, but will often be displayed with non-sale items to entice you into impulse purchases.

9. Sometimes a store will offer what's known as Loss Leaders -- those items the store will sell so cheaply, they'll actually take a loss on each sale. They're hoping to entice new customers into the store who will then purchase other items in addition to the sale item. You need to hold strong against impulse purchases in these situations.

10. Only use coupons for those items and brands that you would normally purchase. Always check the expiration date on your coupons.

11. Some stores offer double coupons -- check with your favorite store and see if they do. Some stores will even accept competitor's coupons.

12. Hand your coupons to the cashier before they start to ring up your order so you don't forget later.

13. Stock up on frequently used items when they go on sale (canned goods, toilet paper, shampoo, etc.).

14. Natural food co-ops are becoming quite common. This can be a great way to purchase organic fruits and vegetables, whole grains and other usually expensive items at competitive prices.

15. Only bulk buy those items you know you'll use before they go bad. Stockpiling toilet paper is a good idea, but bananas might be another story (unless you plan on baking with them or freezing the pulp for use in recipes later).

16. Watch for sales on ground meats. Divide the meat into one pound batches and freeze in individual zip-top freezer bags.

17. If you have extra freezer space, stock up on bakery and dessert items from bakery outlet stores.

18. One simple approach to meal planning is setting a price goal for each meal. For example: breakfast = $1.00 per person, dinner = $6 to $7 total.

19. Don't shop when you're hungry. You're more liable to make impulse buys when your stomach's rumbling.

20. Check store entrances or bulletin boards for special flyers, and don't forget to look in local newspapers for additional coupons.

Deborah Taylor-Hough (freelance writer, wife and mother of three) is the author of "A Simple Choice: A Practical Guide to Saving Your Time, Money and Sanity" and the best-selling book, "Frozen Assets: How to Cook for a Day and Eat for a Month" (Champion Press). Visit Debi at http://hometown.aol.com/dsimple/.