Low-country store deals

Store deals for this week:

Kroger:  sales started on Sunday, runs till Saturday, customer card needed for deals

Buy 10 get $5 off:  Hunt’s canned tomatoes/paste (.59 final price), Ritz (1.99), Post cereal (1.99)

Kroger cheese 3/5 (this is usually the best price for cheese, except for the sale that was a few weeks ago)

Publix:  sales run Thursday to Wednesday

Sweet Baby Rays BBQ sauce B1G1 (2.49)

Mt Olive pickles B1G1 (2.99)

Kraft Mayo B1G1 (5.33)

Lawry’s Marinade B1G1 (3.19)

GM cereal B1G1 (3.99)

Post cereal B1G1 (4.63)

Barilla pasta B1G1 (1.53)

BC brownie mix B1G1 (2.63)

Del Monte tomatoes B1G1 (1.55)

Ritz crackers B1G1 (3.89-better price than Krogers sale)

Pompeian Olive oil B1G1 (6.59)

Clorox bleach 2/4

Piggly Wiggly:  sales run Wednesday to Tuesday

bonelss pork chops 1.99/lb

seedless grapes 1.49/lb (still prefer less per lb for grapes, but over the last 3-6 months this is the best price)

Pace picante sauce 2/4

Manwich 5/5

Smuckers grape jelly 2/4

Pasta roni 5/5

Clorox bleach 2/4

Bi-Lo:  sales run Wednesday to Tuesday

B1G1 deals this week, including:  tuna (1.50), Kraft BBQ (2.15), SH taco or sloppy joe mix (1.16), Krusteaz lemon bar mix (2.99), Ricola cough drops (2.05)

Botticelli olive oil (10.99)

Hunts ketchup .99

Food Lion:  sales run Wednesday to Tuesday

Kraft BBQ sauce B1G1

Kelloggs frosted flakes B1G1

Hunt’s ketchup & French’s mustard 10/10

Hamburger helper 10/10

Wish-bone salad dressing B1G1

Mt Olive pickles B1G1

Ronzoni pasta B1G1

Manwich 10/10

Van Camps pork and beans .79

rotel 10/10

ME onion soup mix .69

Grocery Shopping Tips:  

--Basically the more you can stock up when things are on sale, the less over-time you will be spending on groceries.  Stock up ONLY on things your family will eat and be able to use before the items go bad.

--Know what the prices of products are at your favorite stores, so when you get the ads, you can compare the price.  Compare prices with Sams club, online prices, etc.  Stock up when the sale price is less than the cheapest price elsewhere.

--Write (or type) the prices down so you have them available.  Prices of produce can change quickly, but in general expect price changes every month or two on produce items that are seasonal.  Other products, the prices do change (and sometimes by quite a bit), but usually they stay close to the same price over a period of months.  As you keep a price list--both of regular prices and of sale prices, you’ll be able to see patterns in sales and prices--when things are cheapest, how often things come on sale, etc.  

--Sales ads:  some things are drastically on sale--called “loss leaders”--to get you in the store, other things aren’t necessarily marked down in price, they are simply “for sale” so just because it is in the ad does not mean it is on sale or even a good price.  Remember a bargain is only such if you can and will actually use the item, it still costs money, but less than full-price.

--Meats & produce:  set a per pound price that you are comfortable with paying and find deals that are at or below that price.  Example:  meats $2/lb or less; produce depends on the type, but in general $1.50/lb or less.  For some more examples of produce see this post.

--Cereals, breads:  set a price per unit (box, ounce, loaf) that you are willing to pay and then find the deals that are at or below that price.  Example:  cereal--$2/box or less; loaf of bread--$1.50/loaf or less.

--Menu Shop:  In a previous post I mentioned how to save on grocery bills by making menus, see that post here.  But in general, when making a menu follow these steps:

• First:  what perishables do you have on hand that need to be used
• Second:  what sales are available
• Third:  Food Storage items to rotate into meals
• Fourth:  Special Occasions--birthdays, holidays, potlucks, etc.

--Using coupons?  For some things combining a coupon with the sale price at pharmacies and stores is a great deal.  Buy one get one free sales are a great way to use coupons!  So are stores that offer double coupons:  Kroger and some other stores offer double coupons up to 50 cents.  (ex.  if you have a 50 cent off coupon on a cereal, you get the 50 cents then Kroger takes off another 50 cents automatically--yeah!)  Not always is the product with a coupon the cheapest option, but combined with sales or with double coupon deals, often the price of the brand product is much nearer or even less than the generic brands.