Besides meat, produce is the next largest money eater in most people’s food budget. While most people want to eat more fresh produce, they often don’t and cite cost as a big reason they don’t. Instead they eat less healthier options like canned vegetables and fruits. In this post, I will share with you ten tips to help you save on fresh produce that will get you eating more of it very soon!
How to Save Money on Produce
1. While you may not think it is possible, you can find coupons for produce and Saving Star offers an electronic coupon off of a produce item each week. Often times, there will be peelies on other foods such as soups, sauces and meats. Also, did you know that if you write produce companies like Dole you can get free coupons from them? Just look up your favorite company and write them a quick e-mail about how much you love their products and want to try more. I once got 3 coupons for produce that gave me free product. Not BOGO, but FREE. I got 3 bags of salad mix! Also, don’t forget to follow your favorite brands of produce on social media. Often, they have coupons for their fans as well!
2. Now is the perfect time to hit up farmer’s markets. Farmer’s markets are a metropolis of savings for local, fresh and often organic produce. Check out my post on how to save at farmer’s markets.
3. Always shop for produce in season. You will notice that sometimes some fruit and veggies are cheaper than other times of the year. This is because that fruit or veggie is in season. Use the Favado App to find the best deals on produce in your local stores. You can find more tips for buying in season produce here.
4. It is not too late to plant a garden! You would be surprised at what you can save on produce if you grow your own. You can even can it or freeze produce, if you have a lot left over at harvest time.
5. When you come across an amazing sale on produce, stock up, just as you would with any other sale item. You can freeze many fruits and vegetables. You can also dehydrate many produce items. Or, if you find, say, apples on sale, buy a bunch and make applesauce or apple butter.
6. Autumn is also a great time to visit orchards and do “pick your own“. You can get great discounts and have a fun time as a family picking your own watermelons, pumpkins, apples and even peas.
7. Don’t feel like you need to buy everything organic. There is a handy list of the “Clean 15” that can be bought non-organic. These veggies and fruits have less pesticide exposure than other types of produce. No need to spend extra money when you don’t need to. Just make sure to wash and clean these as well.
8. If you have a neighborhood co-op, join it. A co-op is a grocery store that gets local produce and is able to lower the price because the members do volunteer work running the store, rather than paying employees. The volunteer requirements are usually very low, about 4 hours a month and the savings are awesome.
How do you save money on fruits and vegetables?
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