With the economy in the doldrums, many families are looking for ways to make the most of their income.  I’ve discussed ways to save money on food in the past, but one tactic that I’ve not covered are food co-ops. 

Co-ops are essentially social collectives that work together to make food more affordable or accessible to people.  Most co-ops are focused on making local or natural food more readily available to its members.  Some, however, help make food more affordable by buying in bulk and passing the savings on to their members.

One such organization is Angel Food Ministries, which – contrary to what its name may imply – is neither a charity nor a denominational organization.  Instead, it provides balanced, affordable food to anyone who is interested in purchasing groceries through their monthly, pre-set menus.  They claim that their offerings, which typically cost about $30, would cost about $60-$65 if purchased in a grocery store.  They’re able to pass on significant savings to their buyers because they purchase restaurant-quality food from distributors in bulk at steep discounts.

Their basic “regular box” runs about $30 and is intended to provide balanced nutrition for a family of four for a week, or for one person for close to a month.  When a buyer purchases a regular box, they can add on optional purchases, such as a box of fresh fruit and veggies, or a box of frozen meat. 

In order to participate, you simply need to find a host site located near you, and then contact the host site with your order after you’ve looked over their monthly menu.

In the past, I’ve covered the best foods for under a buck, but can you make decent meals out of them?  It turns out that you can.  Billy Vasquez, aka “The 99-cent Chef”, runs a blog that focuses on nutritious meals that can be made using inexpensive ingredients found at 99 cent stores.

He got his start when he discovered his local 99 cent food store; and after looking around, he realized that you could actually cook tasty, good-for-you fare for not a lot of dough.  Recent meals include Pork with Red Hot Peppers and Cashew Stir-Fry, Texas Style Dry Rub Barbeque, and Cesar Chavez Salad.  So, while the ingredients may be cheap, the food is decidedly upscale. 

Read: The 99 Cent Chef

It is expensive to raise children; and for many parents, this hits home as soon as they stop at the grocery store to pick up formula and diapers.  For newborns, the cost of formula can run between $100-$120 a month and diapers are about the same.  However, there are a few things you can do to save money when buying baby formula:

• Buy in bulk at warehouse stores – Compared to our local grocery store, Costco sells Similac and Enfamil for about 20% less.  Do be aware, however, that warehouse stores sometimes will place limits on the types of coupons they accept.
• Consider store brands – The cost of store-brand formula may be about half the cost of a similar name-brand product.  The US Government tightly regulates formula, so any brand you buy at a well-known store should be safe.  Of note is the fact that there have been problems with Chinese-made formula.  It appears that some smaller stores and ethnic markets may sell Chinese-made formula, even though it is not approved for importation into this country.  If in doubt, check the label.  If you do want to consider a store-brand, check with your pediatrician.
• Sign-Up for additional cost-savings – Each of the major brands offer a number of savings coupons and other goodies when you sign up for their mailing list.  Signing-up only takes a few minutes, so it can potentially be well worth your time.  Here are the sign-up links for each:  Nestle Good Start (via Gerber), Similac and Enfamil.

• Plan Your Visit – Before you hit the market, sit down and plan your meals and needs, so that you can buy only the items you need and help avoid unnecessary impulse buys.  Also, with proper planning, you can save time by buying enough so that you only need to visit the grocery store once or twice a week.
• Shop During Off Hours – Avoid the rush and crowds by heading to the grocery store during slow times:  early morning and late at night.  While not a money-saving tip, it can make the trip a bit less stressful and allow you to better focus on the task at hand.
• Consider Coupons and Incentive Programs – With your grocery list in hand, check sites like coupons.com or flip through your Sunday paper to find coupons that you can use to save money on the thing that you need to buy.  Sites like Coupon Mom go a step further by helping you time the use of coupons so that you can maximize your savings.  Likewise, in-store incentive programs like those run by Safeway are an additional avenue that you can use to save money on groceries.
• Choose the Right Store – All stores are not created equal.  Gourmet markets like Whole Foods are fine for high-end products, but can be really expensive if you do all of your shopping there.  Likewise, wholesale stores like Costco provide savings when you buy in bulk, but lack the variety that you may find at a common grocery store.  Your best bet?  Investigate each type of store and determine where you should shop for the products you commonly use.  For example, you may find that it’s best to bulk paper products at Costco or Sams, but vegetables at your local market.
• Eat Before You Shop – Minimize the temptation to buy on impulse by eating before you go to the grocery store. 
• Understand the Strategies that Stores Employ – The most expensive goods tend to be placed at eye-level and on the ends of aisles.  Less expensive items tend to be placed either low or high, so you have to think about them and perhaps stretch a little to get to them.  Likewise, the healthy foods:  fresh vegetables and lean meats, for example, tend to be placed around the perimeter of the store.
• Load Up on Cheap, Healthy Foods – You can buy good, healthy foods without breaking the bank.  In fact, some of the best foods are downright inexpensive.  Among them:  eggs, bananas, tea, coffee, oatmeal, spinach, potatoes, nuts, apples, beans, broccoli, tofu, and lowfat milk.
• Load Up when Necessities go on Sale – If you notice that items you frequently buy are being deeply discounted by your grocer, then consider stocking up and then storing or freezing them until you need them.  Beware that some sale items may be close to expiration.  If that’s the case, then look toward the back of the case to see if there are fresher items available.  Grocers rotate their stock so that the items with the closest expiration items are toward the front.
• Try the Store Brands – Store brands used to be lumped into the same category as generics.  However, these days some are quite good…and some are even produced in the same facility as more expensive name-brand goods.  Recently, I noticed that my grocer had store-brand vanilla wafers for only 99 cents; whereas the name brand version was $2.49.  The taste?  Exactly the same.
• Ignore the Packaging – Marketers spend a lot of time focused on packaging graphics and verbiage with one goal in mind:  to get you to buy it.  Do your best to ignore it and focus instead on your shopping list and the product label.
• Read the Labels – The most important information can almost always be found on the label.  What’s the product size?  How many calories does it have?  Are the sodium levels too high?  Is there enough protein? Does it contain ingredients that you want to avoid?
• Comparison Shop – Compare similar products to see which one offers the best value.  You might find, for example, that one brand of yogurt is higher in protein while having fewer calories.  Likewise, you might discover (as I recently did) that one brand of tissues offered twice the number of sheets at the same price point as their competitors.
• Go for Grains – When purchasing baked goods, steer clear of processed flour and sweeteners and look for whole-grain products.
• Focus on the Cashier – When it’s time to checkout, keep an eye on the prices as the cashier rings up the merchandise.  Pricing mistakes are common, so you may catch one and save yourself a dollar or two.  Likewise, by focusing on the prices, you will be less inclined to consider the candy or magazines that they have placed around the register as an impulse buy.
• Check out local Co-Ops – Some local farms band together and sell their goods directly to consumers, either through local markets or through delivery services.  These services are sometimes your best choice if you want to find the freshest food.  Local Harvest has a database of co-ops around the US.

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Taking your own lunch to work or school on a daily basis can help you save lots of money on an annual basis.  Here are some tips to help you make the most of it:

• Arm yourself with the right food – Restaurants fight hard for your lunch-time dollar every day; and it’s a bit of an unfair fight when compared to your traditional brown-bag lunch.  Think about it: it’s hard to resist that double-stuffed Italian sub from the local deli or a gourmet salad from the cafeteria when your brown-bagged alternative is ham on wonder bread and an apple.  Raise the stakes in your brown-bag battle by starting with a lunchtime menu that will help you resist the temptation to eat out by packing better lunches:  make your own deli subs or salads with upgraded meats, veggies and condiments that you buy at the grocery store.
• Think about your food needs for the entire day – Packing your own lunch can save you additional money if you think about and plan for your food needs for the entire day.  Do you find yourself hitting the soda or snack machine for a quick pick me up at some point during the day?  If so, then plan ahead and bring snacks and drinks to cover those impromptu needs.
• Cook extra portions at dinnertime – It takes a set amount of time to cook dinner, but usually doesn’t take much extra time to prepare a larger portion that you can use for leftover lunches later on during the week.  This tactic helps save you time, as you won’t have to spend as much time thinking about or preparing meals.
• Prep your brown-bags before morning – With showers, breakfast, and getting the kids off to school, mornings can get really hectic.  Save yourself some hassle by preparing your lunch the night before. 
• Pack food that will be satisfying – If you find yourself getting hungry throughout the day, then take steps to mitigate the risk of a “snack run” to the vending machines or cafeteria by packing food and snacks that will help satiate your hunger.  Food that is high in lean protein – think nuts, lean means, and boiled eggs - will help satisfy your cravings, because it takes longer for the body to break down protein than it does simple carbohydrates.  In addition, take small packs of conveniently sized veggies, such as bite-sized carrots or celery.
• Consider food safety issues – Poorly prepared, packed or stored food can be a potential health hazard.  As an example, chicken or turkey salad, when left in a warm environment for a short period of time, can easily breed large quantities of bacteria.  If needed, use ice-packs to keep food chilled or thermos bottles to keep food warm during transit; and then refrigerate/microwave as needed.  In addition, consider investing in good, reusable, microwave-safe containers that you can use to store and transport your food.
• Make lunch an event – Break rooms are often blandly decorated, boring environments.  If the weather is nice, head outside; or find some nice place where you can enjoy your meal.

Over the course of the past few years, financial planners have referred to the “Latte Factor”, which is the notion that all of the small daily purchases made at Starbucks and elsewhere add up to a lot of money over time.  It’s no secret that the Grande Latte that costs three or four bucks at Starbucks can be made yourself for less than a buck.  However, I have always worked under the assumption that the number of people that actually made their own coffee drinks pales in comparison to the number that stop off at Starbucks or Peet’s.

When Starbucks announced the closing of hundreds of stores, I really wasn’t surprised.  It’s often described as an affordable luxury; and therefore, something that can be easily be cut out of one’s budget. 

However, there is one thing that has really come as a surprise to me:  During each of my last two visits to the grocery store, the bulk section has been sold out of espresso roast coffee beans.  Is this a canary in the coal mine?  Is it possible that people are actually changing their habits en masse because of the downturn in the economy?

How about it?  Have you changed your daily habits in light of the economy?

Side note:  The term “Latte Factor” was trademarked in in 2005 by David Bach.  If Mr. Bach or his company notice this, I hope that they will see fit to allow me to use this term as-is in this article. 

With the current weakness in the US dollar, some of the least expensive but decent wines can be found in countries where the dollar still exhibits strength:  Chile and South Africa, for example.  However, it’s still possible to find good but inexpensive French wines. 

Here’s a list of five for your consideration:

• 2006 Macon Villages, Old Vines-Chardonnay, Vieilles Vignes, Mommessin, 750ml ($9.76) – Described as a “great buy” by Pop's Wine, it’s a medium body unoaked Chardonnay.
• L’Abbaye de St. Ferme 2004 ($10.79) - Wine.com describes this as “a delicious example of a classic Bordeaux – 100% Estate bottled and aged in French oak barrels for six months – ripe flavors of sweet black cherries and chocolate.”
• Christian Moueix Merlot 2005 ($12.29) – Also from Wine.com, this merlot was rated as an 86 by Wine Enthusiast and is described as a “charming, medium bodied wine.”
• Chateau Lemothe de Haux, Bordeaux (Blanc) ($14.15) – Mentioned by Edward Deitch, a wine columnist with Today, said “I ended up sticking with the white Lamoth de Haux as the food came out. And here was the great thing about it: This white wine, which I found listed on the Web at anywhere from $10 to $15, matched well with just about everything, from grilled hot dogs and hamburgers to cold cuts and salads”
• Verget ‘Bourgogne Terroirs de Cote d’Or’ 2006 ($17.20) – Noted in the Wall Street Journal, where they described it as “Chablis-like, with classy, lime-like fruit.  Pairs well with grilled fish.

One need not spend a lot of money to enjoy good wine.  In fact, as this recent segment on NPR points out, improved production processes and global competition has raised the quality of inexpensively priced wines over the past few years.

This is borne out in a recent update to Wine.com's 90+ rated wines list.  On the list are several selections priced around ten bucks or less, including:

• Strong Arms Shiraz 2006 ($10.29)
• Veramonte Sauvignon Blanc Reserva 2007 ($9.99)
• Leasingham Magnus Riesling 2006 ($8.79)
• Veramonte Cabernet Sauvignon Reserva 2006 ($9.99)

And on the high end, Hidalgo La Gitana Manzanilla (500ML) is rated as a 97, and yet it can be purchased for less than $15.

Want to see more of wine.com’s highly-rated wines list?  Click here…

With food prices rising, many families are looking for ways to stretch their grocery budgets.  divine caroline has a good article on healthy, yet inexpensive, foods that you should include in your diet.  Items on their list include:

• Eggs – A versatile, inexpensive protein
• Oatmeal – Very cheap, but packed with fiber and complex carbs
• Bananas – Portable and cheap, yet loaded with potassium and fiber
• Coffee – Antioxidants and caffeine…what more could you want?

I am a bit suprised that tea did not make their list, as it contains antioxidants in the form of polyphenols and is dirt cheap.

Want to see their entire list?  Head on over to read the article…