Saving Money with Reduced Produce
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In the back of my local Stop and Shop next to the deli, there’s a reduced produce cart. I don’t know why I’ve only recently started lingering next to this cart. Affordable real food is my game here, but somehow I’ve passed this section countless times without stopping. I haven’t put my nose in the air as I passed it, thinking myself too good for reduced produce. Perhaps, though, in the split second of walking by those bruised fruits and veggies, on some level I did decide that they were below me.
Not anymore, though. Yesterday I walked by the deli and I saw a woman with a large, shrink wrapped container of fresh zucchini. “Zucchini bread,” I thought, “zucchini spaghetti, chocolate zucchini muffins. . . My summer supply of zucchini in the freezer is gone. I need zucchini!” She was walking away from the reduced produce cart. I made my way over to the cart, and the zucchini was all gone. She had gotten the last pack. There I was, jealous of another shopper’s stash of discounted zucchini.
I explored the other options on the cart, though, and there were some great finds. I got 3 pounds of organic apples for $.50 a pound. This price is unheard of for conventional apples, let alone organic. They’re perfect for apple bread or applesauce or apple crisp, and they can sit in the fridge for a while. I also got 1¼ pounds of strawberries for $1.50, and they looked fresh to me. When I got home and examined them, there was one strawberry at the bottom that needed to go in the compost bin. This is about the same luck I have when I buy strawberries on sale for $2 or $2.50 a pound. I washed them, cut the stems off, and put most of them in the freezer. They’ll be perfect for smoothies, muffins, or berry sauce.
I’m normally an advocate of shopping with a list and sticking to it. However, the reduced produce section is an exception. Next time you go to your grocery store, see if it has a reduced produce area and take a good look at the selection. Think about what you might be able to make with that food, and see if there’s anything that you’d like to have on hand in the freezer. There’s a good chance there will be something on there that you can use, and the prices can’t be beat.
Check out the other posts in my “Saving Money” series:
Saving Money with Homemade Snacks
Saving Money with Vegetarian Dinners
Saving Money by Joining a CSA
Saving Money with Homemade Staples
Rachael says
I love these sections! I rarely find them, though. The local Giant near me had one out once, and I got about 2 pounds of tangerines for $1! They also had enormous bags of browned bananas for about the same price. I went back to get some bananas to bake with, and the cart was gone!
My favorite place to get reduced food is Sprouts Market. I used to get cups of Greek yogurt for a quarter each! Local eggs on clearance for about $2 (over $6-8) and all other kinds of stuff. I miss my awesome Albuquerque grocery stores. 🙁
Annemarie says
It’s a great feeling to come home with a bundle of affordable produce! We don’t have Sprouts here in Massachusetts, but I’ve heard good things about it.
MQ says
I, too, love the reduced produced section…but we call it the poor, unloved, abused fruit and veggie place and feel so virtuous when we can give them a good home…
Annemarie says
I love it!
Annemarie says
Once you realize that the produce on that cart is still in good shape, it’s the perfect place to shop.
Barb @ A Life in Balance says
Our favorite produce place has a reduced section. My dh tries to get there very early Saturday morning to grab the bags of grapes. I’ve also bought bags of mushrooms and dehydrated them for storage.
I would love for you to link this up to Frugal Thursday Rewind on my blog, A Life in Balance!
Annemarie says
I’m glad you’ve found a good spot for reduced produce, Barb. Grapes can be so expensive, so it pays to get there early!
[email protected] says
I do this too! Reduced produce, reduced meat, reduced dairy, day old bread.
Annemarie says
Great way to shop, Kirsten! It definitely helps keep the grocery bill down.
Annemarie says
This is a great spot for bananas! The browner, the better when it comes to baking.
Sarah says
I do that with the bananas! Our local Fred Meyers store has a section as well. Pre-ripened and cheap 😉
Sandy says
I love the discount produce area. Yours looks much better than mine but I still find great bargains. Almost all of the fruit and vegies I buy come from there and I am very rarely disappointed.
Annemarie says
It’s a great place to shop, especially if you can use the fruits and veggies quickly or get them into the freezer.