Food prices are skyrocketing due to the introduction of biofuels, high regular fuel prices, inflation, and other events outside of our control. For many people, the food budget is becoming the most expensive part of the household living costs. This list is to help people who don’t want to suffer these prices so they can put their hard earnt cash in to more productive areas. This list is in no particular order - using all or just one or two of the tips here should help you save money - substantially in many cases.
When you are shopping for food, it is important that you make a list - this will help you to avoid buying things that you do not need. The highest cost of shopping is almost always the unexpected extras that you don’t really need. Making a list also helps you to realize just how much food you are buying - you would be surprised how much “deadwood” you can cut out. This is particularly effective when used in conjunction with item 6 and 8.
Cooking from recipes is great if you are not the most confident cook, but if you force yourself to experiment with food, you can use up all the bits and pieces left over in the refrigerator and cupboards that might otherwise just sit there and spoil. If you try to empty your cupboards between shopping you will save a fortune - in some cases you will find that you can skip a whole week of shopping. When you are trying to save money you have to give up the idea of luxury meals every day.
When I shop online with a list (see item 10), my grocery bill is more than halved. Supermarkets are designed by specialists who know how to convince you to buy things you don’t want. Every item is placed in such a way that it will entice you. The supermarkets have become incredibly good at this (as is evidenced by my half price shopping bill when I don’t go to the store). You usually save so much money that the small delivery fee charged by some online shopping stores is worth paying. Make sure to follow tip 10 and buy only what it is on your list - nothing more.
Supermarkets have a tendency to package items in odd numbers - such as packs of 3 steaks when you only want 2. This can work to your advantage - buy the 3 pack, cook it all, and save one piece for lunch the next day. This is true of all leftovers - they can either be reheated and eaten the next day, frozen for later use, or recycled in another meal (when you cook leftovers it is called rechaufe). Left over chicken from a roast can be turned in to a hearty chicken soup, left over cooked meat can be ground (minced) and made in to a pie filling, the list is endless. Just remember (item 9) that recipes are not going to help you to cook with leftovers - you need to just dive in and give it a try.
It is a good idea to make a core menu for the week - a menu that doesn’t change from week to week. This may include things like sausages and mashed potato, fried chicken, caesar salad, etc. By adding 5 regular meals you can control the cost of your shopping, and as time goes on you can learn ways to make shortcuts and save more money. Furthermore, one large bag of potatoes can be used up in 2 weeks instead of half a bag sitting around spoiling. Use your extra two days to add a special meal - something that changes every week so you don’t get bored with your meals.
Buying in bulk is almost always cheaper than buying small portions. It is important to remember, however, that this is not an effective shopping tool if you are buying bulk items that you don’t normally use. Bulk shopping should be reserved to the items that you use regularly and in large quantities. For example, if you bake your own bread you should buy the largest sack of flower you can - but if you never bake your own bread you should not buy bulk flour. This seems like an obvious point, but a lot of people get so enthusiastic about the savings that they buy unnecessary goods.
Not only are store brand goods almost always cheaper, but often they contain the very same food as a label brand. This is true not just of food but also clothing. It is definitely not worth paying twice the price just for a fancy label when the quality of the goods are identical. We certainly wouldn’t buy a Lada with a mercedes logo on it for twice the price as a Lada with the Lada logo. Why do it with food?
Cooking from scratch is one of the best ways to save money in shopping. Pre-packaged and pre-cooked meals are expensive - every step in the process of turning raw food in to prepared food adds more to the price. This is true of cuts of meat as well - chicken with the skin and bones intact costs a lot less than skinned boned chicken breasts. For the 2 minutes work you save when buying pre-cut meat it is hardly worth paying a premium price. Cooking from scratch will not only save you money, it will make you healthier as your food will not contain preservatives and chemicals. Also, you can quite often cook a meal from scratch in the same time as it takes to open and heat a pre-made meal.
Coupons are an excellent way to save money. Some shops use loss leaders- this is when they sell goods at cost or less than cost. The aim of loss leaders is to draw customers in to the store. Take advantage of this and shop at a few different places - buying only coupon items. You will be amazed how much money you can save. But be warned - just like bulk buying - do not buy items you do not need just because they are so inexpensive. You are not saving any money when you buy something you don’t need.
Buying local produce will always be cheaper than transported goods because you are not paying transportation costs, and it is these costs which are growing the most rapidly at present. Furthermore, you get to build up a good relationship with members of your local community and get the freshest fruit and vegetables. This also means that you are eating seasonal produce and not something that has been frozen for a year before it hits the shops. Buy pay twice the prize for last year’s apples when you can get apples that have just come off the tree?
译文:
教你十条节省超市购买食品花销的方法
随着生物燃料的引进，常规燃料价格的增长，通货膨胀以及诸如此类我们无法控制的事情的相继发生，食品的价格也正在飞速上涨。食物花销成了我们日常生活消费中最大的一部分。这个清单可以帮助人们避免由价格上涨导致的额外花销，这样，他们可以把钱用在更多有收益的方面。以下各条之间没有先后顺序——可以全部采纳也可以选择其中的一两条，它们可以帮你省不少钱。而且这些经验也适用于其他方面。
10
列购物清单
购物之前列好清单可以避免买回一些不必需的东西。通常，购物花销大的原因大都由于买了些不需要的东西而增加了额外花销。列的清单能够帮助你随时意识到你都买了些什么东西，而又惊奇地发现有多少是可以不要的。如果这条结合第六条和第八条一起用的话，效果就更明显了。
9
减少烹饪大餐
如果你不是一名自信的厨师的话，烹饪大餐的费用是很高的。但你执意要试着做的话，应该选择冰箱里剩下的“边角余料”——这些东西如果不用也可能慢慢变质了。在购物前尽量将冰箱里的东西“消灭”干净的话，能节省不少开支。有时候一周都不必去超市了。想要省钱，你必须打消每天做奢侈大餐的念头。
8
网上购物
网上购物能让我节省一半的钱。超市最会摸索消费者心理了，他们擅于诱惑你买很多并不需要的东西，每件商品都在有意识地刺激你的购买欲。超市非常擅于干这种事（我自身就可以印证，当我按清单买东西时，能节省一半的花销）！网上购物的话，你只要付一点运费，这点钱是很值得花的。记住：只买清单上的东西——多一样都别买。
7
剩菜别扔
超市常常习惯把东西包装成奇数个来卖——比如你只需要2片牛排的时候，它却包装成三片。你很容易就把三片都买回去了，然后全都做了，然后留一片明天中午吃。很多剩菜都可以在第二天热一下再吃，或者冷冻起来以后再用，或者做成别的菜（我们把做剩菜叫做 ）。炸鸡剩了可以做鸡汤，剩下的肉块可以绞碎放到派里，很多很多……记住做大餐可不利于你消灭剩菜，不信你可以试试。
6
拟一个菜谱
做一个周菜谱是很好的主意，而且不需要每周都更换。像火腿、土豆泥、炸鸡和凯撒莎拉等食品。再加入5个常吃菜——你应该知道大概能需要多少钱。你渐渐就会了解一些捷径来省钱了。而且买一大袋子土豆两周之内就用光了，也不会像以前那样，半袋土豆都永不了等着烂掉。挑出两天时间，专门做一些特别的菜，每周一换，以免失去食欲。
5
大批量购买
大批量购买通常会便宜一些。当然了，如果你净买些不用的东西，那就不划算了。大批量购买只适用于那些常用的食品，而且需求量很大。打个比方，如果你经常自己做面包的话，你就需要买一大袋子面粉，如果不亲自做，就不要那样买了。这看似简单，但是很多想省钱的人却总在买根本不需要的东西。
4
买品牌？
小店的商品不仅便宜，而且有时跟品牌食品质量一样。服装也是如此。仅为了一个牌儿而选择比同质量非品牌商品高一倍价格的衣服是不值得的。我们肯定不会花双倍价格买带有梅赛德斯标志的拉达车的。那为什么还要那样购买食品呢？
3
做未加工食品
做未经加工的食物会节省超市花销。带包装食品和熟食都是很贵的——将原材料加工成产品的工艺都会使食品价格升高的。这对肉类的处理程度来说也是一样的——带骨带皮的鸡要比脱骨脱皮的鸡胸脯便宜很多。只需处理两分钟，何必加付处理费用呢。买未加工食品不但很实惠，并且有益于身体，因为它们大都未添加防腐剂和化学物质。而且，如果快点做的话，需要的时间不比打开并加热一个熟食的时间长。
2
买特价食品
买特价食品很实惠。一些店将商品平价或低价卖出以赚得客源。记住借此机会享受优惠——但是切记只买特价食品。你一定不敢相信你省了那么多钱。但是跟“大批量购买”那条一样，别因为便宜，而买你根本不需要的东西。这样你就省不到钱了。
1
买当地产食品
买当地产的食品比买异地运回的食品便宜的多，因为你不需要付运费——现在运费又那么高。另外，你还可以跟地方社区搞好关系并且买到新鲜的水果和蔬菜。这也意味着你不需要买外地品（说不定在打入市场前已经冻过一年了），你可以吃应季产品——为什么不吃刚从树上摘下来的苹果而花双倍价格买去年的苹果呢？