Holy crap, ya’ll. This weekend I went to the grocery store and a gallon of milk was ALMOST FOUR DOLLARS!! I’m shocked and appalled by how high the cost of food is climbing, and then I find out that the price on the sticker isn’t even the end of the problem.
The Consumerist blog talks about the “grocery store shrink ray” - that evil force that is shrinking the SIZE of the products we buy, while the COST remains the same! Excited that your box of Kellogg’s Corn Flakes didn’t go up in price? Yeah, don’t be - it’s now 2.4 ounces smaller. That 20-lb bag of Purina dog food? It’s been “upgraded” to 18 pounds.
Ben Popken, who runs the web site, says that short of being some sort of savant who’s memorized the net weight of everything in your grocery cart, you probably won’t notice the slight changes in product sizes. But here’s one tip off: look for changes in packaging. Kraft Deli Fresh cheese slices went from 11 slices and 8 ounces to 10 slices and 7 ounces and in doing so changed their packaging.
Popken says there are three ways to beat the grocery store shrink ray:
- Look for older, larger sizes still on the shelf. Right now we’re in a crossover phase where a few of the old sizes are still on the shelf, right next to the smaller sizes, all going for the same price.
- Compare unit costs. Look for the small number that gives you the price per ounce. Don’t assume the lowest overall price on the shelf is the best buy.
- Buy based on the best value. Be willing to brand jump if necessary.
How has the increased cost of food changed your buying, spending and eating habits?
Responses to “I’m waiting for John Mellencamp to hold a concert benefiting those of us going broke trying to BUY the food”
July 15th, 2008 at 12:32 pm
As my daughter in Louisiana (mother of 3 under 10 yrs old) said, “Milk should not be a luxury item.”
July 15th, 2008 at 8:45 pm
I paid $4.99 a gallon for milk this morning on Harbortown. Yikes! The last gallon went bad from my kids opening and closing the fridge so much. I may switch to 1/2 Gallons. I used to buy 2 gallons at a time.
July 29th, 2008 at 1:42 pm
Actually the dog food used to be in 20 lb. bags and now they are in 8 Kilo bags which is 17.6 lbs., not quite the 18 lbs. the article states.
July 15th, 2008 at 12:17 pm
Milk is $4.30 a gallon here in Virginia and lasts our family about a day …
Our family doesn’t go out to eat anymore; we spend our entire food budget at the store.
We don’t buy ready-made anything; scratch takes longer but costs much less.
We have a small garden; our yard is too shady for much.
The children and I are working in a friend’s very large garden for a share of her produce.
I’m hoping my husband gets a couple deer and turkeys during hunting season so we’ll have some meat in the freezer.
We’re looking at having a few chickens for eggs and meat — they don’t need much room and will eat all the bugs in the yard.