Cutting Costs

Let's talk about food...

Mmm, food. The flavors, the textures, the mouth feel (ew) - who doesn’t love it? (Maybe that guy who invented that shake containing all daily nutrients because “eating was a burden.” Oh tech bros, how normal and well adjusted you are.)

Disgustingly. tasters compared this shake to Cream of Wheat and “my grandpa’s Metamucil.” Photograph by Henry Hargreaves - excuse me while I go barf.

Over the past few years, food has really had a moment. And I don’t mean in a good way. From cauliflower and bread to meat and cheese, the price of food items has dominated news stories, proliferated across social media and even found its way into work conversations. The cost of all the yummy things we love to gobble down has gone up.

Though we saw some truly shocking increases in 2023 (for example, I used to pay $1.99-$2.49 for tofu, it’s now $3.49-$4.99 depending on the store - a 150% markup!!), it looks like food prices won’t be coming down any time soon.

Canada’s 2024 Food Price Report, released in December, states that food costs will likely rise another 2.5% to 4.5% this year. While this is lower than the 5% to 7% increase we saw in 2023, the rise in food prices will continue to impact our wallets. 

Yes, food is expensive. But, if you're a bit savvy, there are savings to be found. And rather large ones at that.

Never Assume, Run The Numbers

In the “before times” (prior to the panny aka the pandemic, and all the fun inflation we’ve been experiencing lately), I was not a savvy food purchaser. In fact, I was spending far more on food than I’d like to admit. Food to me was something to splurge on. All natural? Heck yes! Organic? Say less and give me more. During these whimsical and less inflated times, I was spending anywhere from $120 to $150 a week (A WEEK) on groceries. As a single person. 

Though this may sound like a lot of money to spend on groceries for ONE person, I could reasonably afford it. At the time, it felt like life was at my fingertips. Rent was MUCH less expensive, gas was still “reasonable,” clothing, sports activities, yoga classes - everything was cheaper. 

However, just because you can afford something, does that mean you should buy it? At the time I thought - why not? Especially when it came to food.

Fast forward to a few months ago, there I was starting to get a grip on what I was actually spending, but for whatever reason my food bill had not yet entered my consciousness. Sometimes we have blind spots when it comes to our spending, and for me, mine was refusing to look at the exorbitant amount I was spending on groceries.

I knew that food was more expensive (#inflation), and I knew I had cut down on the quantity of specialty foods I was buying. However, with ignorance, I assumed that since I had cut down on the pricey items, my grocery bill was less. I mean, how could it not be?

Ah assumptions, how utterly misleading you truly are.

Curious about where the heck my money was going, I started to dig into the specifics. And low and behold, through mindlessly purchasing, my grocery bill had stayed the same. When I discovered this, I was floored. I was buying less high-end items and less items overall, how could I be spending the same amount? 

Inflation, that’s how. 

By not tracking the specifics, by not running the numbers, I was lost in my own assumptions.

Searching For Savings

Needless to say, it hurt to discover the truth. After this revelation, I was determined to find a cheaper way to eat. I discovered that if you put in a little effort and hunt for savings, they are easy to find. You just need to plan, get creative and seek out the savings. 

Now, I understand that everyone has their own foodie needs. Different family sizes, different preferences and ways of eating, but trust me when I say, the savings are out there. Especially if you lean into preparing most, if not all, of your meals at home.

Ignorant of the variety of grocery stores out there, I thought all grocers were more or less equal and that bulk stores are where the savings lie. The truth is: they’re not, and definitely not always.

Finding The Savings

If you live in North America, the discounted grocer is the holy grail of savings. In Canada, specifically south-western Ontario, places like FreshCo and The SupperStore are full of savings and great deals. Don’t believe me? I challenge you to try shopping at one for a month and tell me if you don’t save money.

Costco is another location to find savings. However, for my purposes I’m not fussed on this option for two reasons: 1) I don’t want to pay to access deals, and 2) as a single pringle woman, not being able to get through a ginormous quantity of bulk food before it goes bad is a waste of my resources. That said, if it makes sense and works for your lifestyle and budget, amazing!

After discovering the discounted grocer, I found one near my house (a local FreshCo), and I started shopping there. Making this change has drastically reduced my grocery bill. As a refresher, I was paying between $120-$150 a week in groceries, I now pay about $60-$70 a week. That’s more than a 50% savings every week! In real numbers, I save between $60-$80 a week, or $240-$320 a month, or between $2,880-$3,840 per year. 

That’s a lot of cheddar. And when invested, that cheddar has a lot of growth potential. When you take all that meaty, sweaty cash and invest it, the return on your investment can be quite literally limitless.

Sweaty, limitless cheddar.

You might be thinking: what the heck does ‘limitless’ mean? Well, let’s run the numbers on an example. If you invest that $240-$320 a month in a savings vehicle with 7% annual returns, compounded quarterly for 10 years. At the end of those 10 years, you’ll have between $41,928-$62,892 in your investments. 

You might be asking: what magical investment vehicle is Jill referring to?? Well, VFV for one, which actually has an average annual return of 9%. (Don’t know what I’m talking about? Check out my post to get the deets.)

With a little time and with the magic of compound interest, the return on your “grocery savings” investment IS limitless.

The Power Of Conscious Decision Making 

But here's the thing, to gain access to those savings, you need to think through your actions. You need to question what you’re doing. You need to make conscious decisions. And that is hard to do. 

Thinking through your week, planning your week, thinking through your actions, what you buy and don’t buy, it all takes a lot of energy. For most of us, it takes more energy than we think we have. I’m here to tell you that you do have the energy, and you can do it.

Trust me. I made up all kinds of excuses when it came to my food spending behaviour. I rationalized that I saved the same on gas walking to the wildly expensive grocery store around the corner from my apartment as I would save from traveling however many kilometers to a discounted grocery store. Let me tell you, unless you’re driving more than 20+ minutes, you’re saving more at that discounted grocery store every dang time.

Remember, every dollar you save gives you the freedom of choice. The more dollars, the more choices. Making conscious decisions about where and how you’re buying food items (or any items for that matter) means that you will have greater potential for savings. More savings equals more freedom.

So get out there you sexy beast, and go find those deals. Get curious about the cost of things, think through your purchases, and invest all that sweaty cheddar you’re saving. It will pay off in the long run.

As always, we’ve totally got this!