I don't know too many people who can afford to not watch their grocery budget. Every little bit helps, and if money isn't tight at your house - I am sure you can find lots of things you would rather spend your money on than groceries.
The average American family ends up throwing away 25% of the foods and drinks they buy. That is 1/4 of your whole grocery budget. For the a typical family of four, they might as well fling $150 straight in the garbage every month!
If they could reduce their grocery waste by just half, that same family of four could chop around $75 a month off their grocery bill. (No coupons required!) That isn't even suggesting that you have no grocery waste, but that you just cut the things that we are wasting in half. That is a really huge amount, Isn't it!?
Here’s an easy way to do exactly that.
When you put your leftovers away after dinner, do your best to store them in a clear container, so it’s easy to see what’s in there and to avoid discovering some putrid mystery food shoved to the back of the fridge weeks later.
Perhaps make a shelf, just for "ready to eat" leftovers. So when you open the fridge to find something to eat, that can be the first place that you look. You can help your family to look on that shelf or in those specific containers when they are finding something to eat.
(If you have them available to you - Mason jars are a great way to do this on a budget.)
Then, before you put the container away, take 5 seconds to grab a sticky note and write today’s date on the top. If you don't have sticky notes, use a washable marker and write on the container.
It helps cut down on those fun conversations that go something like, “Honey, do you remember when we had this spaghetti?”
“Um I don’t know, does it stink?”
“Hmm...I can’t tell, you smell it.” (You, smell it .... No! You smell it...... )
“Um...better toss it,” as you see visions of all the members of your family doubled over with food poisoning fluttering through your brain.
So instead of THAT, try this trick to start saving immediately.
You’ll be much more likely to use up leftovers in time, without the guessing game, or the waste.
Doing those simple little things to save your grocery budget doesn’t have to be complicated or cause you to spend tons of extra time shopping around or standing in the kitchen.
I am learning the greatest results can come from the smallest of shifts in habits. It’s these small changes that help you save money on groceries consistently, month after month, even when you’re super busy.
