By Amanda Reichardt
Buying healthy groceries for yourself and/or family can be a daunting task. Here are some easy tips so you can help feel well prepared when you enter the supermarket.
Planning
- Take a peek at grocery store flyers, coupons, and loyalty or membership programs for fresh produce, lean proteins, and low-fat dairy items. Use these promotions to create cost-saving healthy meals during the week.
- Write a shopping list ahead of time. The bulk of your food dollars should be spent on fresh produce, lean proteins, whole grains, and low-fat dairy items. To cut cost, include ingredients that can be used for multiple meals. Steer away from highly processed foods. Making a list can help to prevent impulse buying.
- Organize your list to fit the layout of the market in order to save time.
- Try to go shopping when you are not hungry so that you avoid impulse purchases.
- Avoid rushing through the store so that you can compare costs and read labels.
Produce
- When purchasing produce, choose fruits and vegetables that are in season as they tend to be cheaper due to their abundance. Plus they are at peak flavor!
- Try frozen fruits and vegetables! The nutrient quality is comparable or even higher than other produce because of new freezing techniques like flash-freezing. To avoid added sugars (words that tend to end in -ose), be sure to check the nutrition label on the package.
- If you wish to purchase organic products, The Environmental Working Group is your new friend. They publish a list of produce called the “Dirty Dozen” which are produce items that tend to have higher pesticide residues. They also publish the “Clean 15” which are produce items with the lowest pesticide residues. These lists can help you prioritize which organic items to purchase.
Meat
- Meat tends to be one of the more expensive items on our grocery list. We can purchase meat when it is on sale and then freeze some at home for later use.
- Try meatless meals throughout the week by replacing half the meat in a dish with beans, soy, vegetables, nuts, quinoa, lentils, tofu, eggs, tempeh, and/or chickpeas.
Grains and Dry Goods
- Stock up on grains and dry goods when they are on sale because they do not spoil quickly. These items tend to be inexpensive and provide many nutrients.
Take a Peak
- Look at the top and bottom shelves because more expensive foods tend to be placed at eye level.
- Read the smaller number to the left of the price on the price tag. The lower that number is, the more money you tend to save because that is the cost per pound or unit measurement. When that number is low, try buying in bulk to cut-costs. Also use it to compare costs among brands.
- Shop the perimeter of the store because fresh produce, meats, dairy, and breads tend to be positioned around the outside perimeter of the market. This prevents impulse buying of processed foods located in the middle section, thus saving time as well!
- Pay attention at the checkout counter to be sure prices are rung up as advertised.
- Try to avoid pre-sliced, pre-diced, pre-washed, pre-chopped, pre-cooked, or pre-shelled items because the extra labor involved increases the price.
Prevent Waste
- To prevent your purchases from going to waste, cook fish, seafood, meats, and produce early in the week and save heartier items for the end of the week. Leftovers are great for lunch and can be revamped into new meals like casseroles, sandwiches, or soup.
- Store foods according to when you purchased them or by expiration date to be sure you eat the oldest first.
- Supermarket dietitians are becoming more and more prevalent. If your local store has a dietitian, ask any nutrition or healthy purchasing questions. They can help you when purchasing foods for various medical conditions, including food allergies, diabetes, and special diets (lactose-intolerant, low-sodium, gluten-free). They can show you new foods and ingredient substitutes you may not have considered. Plus, they may offer classes on food safety, cooking, and nutrition. It is important to remember that every supermarket dietitian provides valuable information, so stop in to see what they can do for you!
Amanda Reichardt is a Dietetic Student/Volunteer with Cornell Cooperative Extension of Suffolk County’s Family Health and Wellness Program