CUTTING YOUR GROCERY BILL PART II

FOR THE PAST three weeks, the Consumer Affairs Commission (CAC) has been focussing on advising consumers on ways to cut cost and increase savings in the face of wage freezes and rising costs (We continue today).

Pack your lunches
A large lunch can run you in the range of $150.00 - $200.00, some even up to $250.00. You could therefore save a lot of money by simply preparing lunches from leftovers and items from your cupboard. In the case of children, check out whether it is cheaper to have the school provide their lunches or for you to make them yourself. To make it fun, have the children participate in the lunch decisions or in actually making the lunches. This helps stem complaints. For snacks, include fruits like bananas, apples, oranges, June plum, dried fruit, trail mix, chips and homemade goodies, such as cookies, pudding, etc.
Take drinks with you - Most Jamaicans have access to fruits and vegetables or have such plants in their yards. It will prove very economical and healthy to invest in a juicer or blender and make your own juices. Otherwise, you can buy drinks wholesale, as it is more economical than buying retail. If you drink coffee on the run, invest in a thermos and carry your own.

Backyard Gardening
Growing a few herbs may give you the courage to grow a full-fledged vegetable garden. Or you may want to try edible landscaping - putting plants in your landscape that give you food too, like fruit trees, peas, peanuts, etc. Grow food that you actually eat. Practice composting waste vegetable matter and use them to nurture your garden. This will also save you money on fertilizers, plus it is much more organic.

Preserve Foods
As you become more accomplished both in cooking and gardening, you may want to can those special sauces, peppers, and jellies for even more savings. There are many excellent food-preserving books in the library and bookstores as well as online. Some things, such as green gungo peas can be frozen and sorrel can be drawn and put down for use at Christmas time. Freeze fruit pulp and extract when they are in season and less expensive. You will have them all year round to be used in your homemade fruit juices.

Try store brand and generics
As with substituting cheaper things for the expensive, try lower cost items. Keep going down in price until you notice a change in the quality, and then move back to the next brand/item up. You may discover that most brands are created equal and some generics are pretty good too. Some basics, like sugar and flour, really don't change from brand to brand, so go with the lowest price and/or what is on sale.

Use coupons and discounts where practical
Only use coupons if you buy the item regularly, and you can't get the item at a lower price by using store/generic brands. Your price book will be a great help in determining whether a coupon is really a good deal or not. Make use of senior citizens or other discounts wherever these are available.

Use "Free" Food Sources
Most Jamaicans have friends and relatives in the rural parishes that cultivate food items. It would be useful to visit these persons and acquire the items available, which will enable you to omit such produce from your shopping list and therefore reduce your food budget.

Try bulk cooking
There are certain foods that are eaten at least thrice for the week, such as rice and meats. These meals can be cooked for the week and stored properly in the portion sizes in which they will be used and reheated whenever needed. The aim is to make every cooking session count, this way you are not only saving money, but time as well.

Tell us what issues you want addressed

Send e-mail to: cacjam@infochan.com or star@gleaner.com

Write to us at: 1B Holborn Road, Kingston 10 Or call us at: 926-1650-2 or toll free 1-888-991-4470, ask for our Information Desk