This is a question everyone seems to ask me. Yes, you will see coupons on snacks and less healthier foods. But finding them on healthy or even organic foods isn’t impossible. It’s totally doable to save while trying to eat healthy, organic or even clean.
Since it is the beginning of a new year and everyone is trying to eat healthier, I figured I needed to put a post together for you guys. So here are some tips to help you on your way:
- Shop in Season: This is the easiest way to save money while shopping. If you try to purchase fruits or vegetables out of season, you will pay 3-4 times more than they normally cost.
- Use Store Coupons: This might seem like a no-brainer. But a lot of people don’t realize that places like Whole Foods, Earth Fare and other Health Food Stores actually have coupons. You can usually sign up for these coupons online on their websites. And, you will even get emailed each week about the best deals and coupon offers. It’s a great way to know when that Salmon or Organic Chicken goes on sale.
- Only Shop the Front Page of Weekly Ad: Another easy way to save money (to go along with #1) is to shop the front page of the store’s weekly ad. Even at a Health Food Store, the front page ad usually has all of the best deals on it.Items that are listed on the front page are what they call a Loss Leader. It basically means that the store is losing money to sell you the items at those prices. Not all of the items will always be a Loss Leader. But you can pretty much bank on the fact that most of them will be. Grocery stores do this to entice you to come into their store. They will mark up other items hoping that you will purchase them while you are there and they can make up the cost.
- Save Money with Coupons on Household Items: If you find it is really hard to find discounts or deals on the foods your family likes to eat, then your best bet is to use coupons religiously on things other than food. So, use coupons on toilet paper, cleaning products, toothpaste… I think you get the idea. If you do that, you should be making a dent in your budget. And, if you learn to stock up on those household items when they are at their lowest price point, you will have that extra money you need to purchase those specialty food items for your family.
- Shop Online Retailers: I’ve personally gotten a lot into Organic and All Natural foods the past year. It is amazing to me how online retailers can almost always save you the most money! Vitacost is one of those companies. They sell natural and organic foods. They have coupon codes regularly. Plus, if you sign up through this link, you will get a FREE $10 to spend at Vitacost on whatever you want. Also, don’t forget to check Amazon. You might not think of them as a Grocery store. But, their selection is pretty extensive and I’ve found a lot of cheaper grocery deals through them than my local grocery store.
- Email Companies Directly for Coupons: You can email any company and request coupons. Just give them your honest opinion: whether negative or positive. Or just simply state that you love their products and were wondering if they had any coupons they could send you. A lot of companies will. And, if you have a hard time finding coupons for some of those expensive food items, this will definitely help!
Do you have tips to share on how to save money on your Healthier Foods? Please leave a comment below! I’m sure the readers would love to hear!
saber
When I go to my health food store they always have produce section that is discounted because it is going bad. If I know I cant eat it before it goes bad I usually buy it anyway (for $1-2 a bag of produce) then I take it home blend it up with water or juice and put it in icecube trays. I freeze it that way and then add those cubes to my smoothies, this is also a good way to get a variety of nutrients.
leeanne
hi all! I find that using local co-ops really cuts down on my fresh, healthy produce bill. If I spent $15 at Costco, I might get a bag of apples and some peppers but if I do a website like bountifulbaskets.org (there are many others out there) I get a GIANT basket full of a variety of fruits/vegetables. Also, as much I like to buy in bulk to save costs, I just can’t use 8 bell peppers in 2 weeks so there ends up being a lot of waste. I like the co-ops for the variety and you get just a few of everything. Sometimes, you even get something odd that you would never buy but you may find you like (my family had never eaten Kale and when we got it in our basket, I sauteed it with garlic/olive oil and served with our pasta dinner and it was gobbled up!)
Lynne
I agree with Leanne. Bountiful Baskets or othey type co-op is the way to go. We have tried so many different types of produce through that that I never would have purchased at the store. I would say if you diligently coupon/price match you could probably provide your family with produce for cheaper BUT you would not get nearly the variety. By having such a large selection and the challenge of consuming or using all of it before it goes bad, a co-op really encourages healthy eating. We’ve been doing it for almost 4 years now and my 3 year old will eat any vegetable out there, and generally eat the vegetables before anything else on his plate. For Thanksgiving the only thing he wanted seconds on was the vegetable tray 🙂 I truly believe this is because he has always been exposed to such a large variety of items.
Jennifer
Love co-ops too. I try to do a co-op one week and a regular store the next week. I don’t think it saves money to have to add another store trip. I like the Utah Co-Op organic basket and they have awesome eggs too. The Community Co-Op in Utah is also a great price but a better deal on non organic.
Amanda
Thank you for commenting on the Utah Co-Op. It looks very impressive & low cost. I have never heard of it before and have been looking for a way to save money on Organic produce/items. Thank you. I am looking forward to going there soon.
Meghan
I’d love to see more on the co-ops…maybe a list of options and price comparisons. It’s just me, my husband, and my 2-year old, so I haven’t figured we’d be able to eat it all.
Stacy
I split mine with a neighbor. We alternate buying them every week, so you only have to pay for it twice a month, but you don’t get as much and you eat it before it goes bad!
leeanne
@ Meghan – my brother struggles with that so he shares a basket with a friend and they split the cost and take turns picking it up (which in my opinion is the worst part of the whole experience…sometimes those trucks aren’t very timely and sometimes you’re waiting in the cold/rain). I would love to see a list of the other co-ops out there too but I would imagine so many of them are truly ‘local’ and it may be hard to compile one list.
Nicole
Finding deals on amazon for groceries… Can someone expand on this? I feel like amazon has so many products I don’t know how to hunt for deals there. I would love to find grocery deals there as we use amazon for many other items, but I’m not sure of the best way to search for great prices.
Linda
I don’t think it is right to suggest in #6 that people post a negative review on someone in the hopes of being rewarded by getting a coupon. Obviously you don’t want a coupon from a company you don’t like so why would you post a negative review to get a coupon?? These companies are owned by people who work hard and don’t need the headache of “false reports” just so you can try to get something discounted while trying to do them harm. Yikes! What kind of advice is that?
Lindsey
I don’t think she was implying that you falsely give a company a poor review just to get a coupon. Most, if not all companies appreciate honest feedback-positive or negative. It’s just good customer service to compensate someone for taking the the time to give feedback. Nothing wrong with that!
Melea Johnson
Hey Linda,
I wasn’t telling people to give a bad review. I meant an honest review, whether it was good or bad, and companies will usually send youa coupon. I will update the post so others aren’t confused either. Thanks!!
Ashley
I would also like to see a price comparison on co-ops. To be honest I don’t think they save money. If I cooked like I should, we (my husband, me, and my 2 year old) would eat all of it, so that is not an issue. But I can spend $10 at the grocery store and have a house fill of fruits and veggies for the week, if I shop what is on sale. A couple times I priced the baskets and didn’t seem to be saving money. ESPECIALLY not when we used Winder Farms, although it was nice to have it delivered to our door 🙂