I am attempting to buy grocery items in bulk. Any suggestions or tips?
By CRYSTAL from Zebulon, NC
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Buying in bulk allows you to take advantage of sales and stock up on things when they're cheap. Also, dried legumes are really great for saving money. They are inexpensive and easy to make.
Check the price per pound rather than the package price to find the best deal. I know my supermarket sometimes runs deals where it's cheaper to buy the smaller packs of rice or pasta rather than the large bags.
Also I only stock up on the things I use regularly. There's no point in having a dozen cans of pumpkin taking up space in the cupboard if you only have pumpkin pie twice a year!
Make sure you have room to store your bulk buys, and don't fall into the trap of buying a bulk quantity of something your family will never touch. Oh boy, I learned that one the hard way!
One of the best bulk buys out there is the case of freezer zip-lock bags. Very handy to have around, and can be used to store other bulk buys like the rice that comes in the 5-10lb bags inside a case (seen that, it's handy to have rice and flour come that way, makes it easier to store and use).
Another very helpful tip I got when I started buying things like rice and flour in the case loads is to put the food into the freezer for a couple of weeks to kill off any critters that may have hitched a ride. Then drop the bag of flour or rice into a freezer zip-lock bag to stack on your pantry shelves.
Best tip? Watch the 'best by' or other expiration dates. Sometimes a bulk buy is a clearance of things way past their shelf life.
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