Home | WebMail | Register or Login

      Calgary | Regions | Local Traffic Report | Advertise on Action News | Contact

Posted: 2024-05-16T07:00:06Z | Updated: 2024-05-22T22:34:10Z

If youve been experiencing sticker shock at the grocery store checkout counter, its not necessarily because youre adding more to your cart than usual. The entire country is confronted with the rising cost of groceries , which is only expected to continue. It really makes you think about just how badly you want those avocados , right?

Though you cant do anything about inflation, you can slash your grocery spending by making a few changes to the way you shop while still enjoying your favorite meals and not going hungry. The secret is shopping smarter.

Experts who have mastered food shopping for cheap know the biggest pitfalls that trap people into overspending. Want to avoid them? Here are seven grocery mistakes to keep in mind the next time you do your weekly food haul.

1. Not Knowing How Much Youre Currently Spending On Food

If you want to reduce your food costs, the first step is to figure out how much youre currently spending, family budgeting expert Rob Bertman told HuffPost.

Sometimes, people will pick an amount out of thin air that they want their grocery budget to be, but that can be challenging to stick to if you dont know how much youre currently spending, he said.

For example, Bertman said if your goal is to spend $400 a month on groceries, and you guess that youre typically spending $600 when youre actually spending $1,000, your budget is unlikely to stick and could require some bigger changes.

Once you know how much youre currently spending (by keeping the receipts from your grocery trips in the past month), Bertman said the next step is to think about the choices you can make to reduce that amount. Instead of trying to drastically cut your spending all at once, Bertman recommends making small, incremental changes similar to how someone with a goal of eating healthier may find longer-lasting success by focusing on little adjustments at first, rather than suddenly adopting a super restrictive diet. This is where knowing some other common shopping mistakes can come in handy.

2. Not Making A Meal Plan

Budget Bytes founder Beth Moncel told HuffPost that one of the most common grocery shopping mistakes is not creating a meal plan , or a guide for exactly how youll use everything you buy. Especially with produce, many people buy food that they aspire to eat but dont end up doing so, Moncel said.

For some people, making sure you eat all the food youre buying means writing on your calendar when you are going to prep and cook it, Moncel added.

Bertman is a big believer in meal planning too, but he emphasized that you should be realistic about it.

You can have a great meal plan in place for the week, but if you get home from work and youre too tired to cook, you end up ordering in, he said. Its important to be realistic about your time and ambition.

3. Not Checking The Fridge First

Before you walk out the door with your meal plan and grocery list, Save Money on Groceries Without Losing Your Mind author Tiffany Doerr Guerzon recommends doing yourself a solid by checking your refrigerator, freezer and pantry first. That way, you dont end up with three half-used jars of salsa or other multiples at home.