Fifty dollars might not seem like a lot to feed a family of four for a week, but it can be done. Consider the following money saving strategies.
Limit eating out
You can easily spend $50 on eating one meal out with a family of four. You will probably want to avoid eating out as much as possible and perhaps completely if you wish to stick to this budget. Restaurants often mark up the food quite a bit, and then you also have to pay for tax as well as a tip.
Buy store brands
You can save money by purchasing the store brands of different items instead of the name brands. Sometimes you will get the exact same thing made by the same manufacturer only it is packaged differently. You will find store brands in all different types of products such as breads, dairy products, vegetables and more.
Shop at discount stores
If you want to limit your spending to $50 a week for your family of four, then you might want to consider looking towards lower cost stores. For instance, you can purchase items at a wholesale club like Costco and often save a considerable amount.
Look for sales, coupons and specials
Many stores that sell groceries have numerous sales, coupons and specials. You should look to see the coupons in the Sunday newspaper for instance. Clip coupons that you see. Sometimes you can also combine a store sale with a coupon.
Make less expensive meals
Some meals are just cheaper than others. You might spend a lot for certain ingredients like meat. When making a meal, you might want to calculate the cost of the ingredients and then choose the cheaper meals.
Buy and make in bulk
You may save money if you buy in bulk. Generally speaking, larger packages have a better per unit cost. Also, if you make a lot then you can use it for leftovers.
Just because you are eating inexpensively does not mean you have to eat unhealthy food. Sometimes a different version of a certain food will be cheaper. For instance, let’s say you like to eat blueberries because of all of the health benefits. If they are out of season fresh blueberries can be very expensive, but perhaps you can save a lot by purchasing them frozen.
It is possible to feed a family of four for a week under $50. You should keep good track of your expenditures because otherwise you can easily surpass this without even realizing it. Try the above strategies to help you accomplish this.