Buy Big, Save Big: Real Life Example
This article is a follow-up to “8 Tips for Real Food on a Real Budget” and provides a cost comparison of three items as an example of how you can save money by buying large/bulk sizes. so, if you’re looking for ways to curb costs and better manage your budget, I highly recommend reading 8 Tips for Real Food on a Budget.
How buying BIG will save you money:
For comparison purposes, let’s say I use approximately 15 ounces of coconut oil, 16 ounces of honey and a pound of blanched almond flour each week. The cost per week for these four items would be $30.91 per week, if I am buying just what I need for the week (i.e. small size containers).
However, if I started buying the largest size available for these items (that I could reasonably use before the expiration date), then I would actually save a significant amount of money.
Let’s compare costs and see how much money we can save per week on just these four items by buying larger/bulk sizes at Mother’s Market – a local whole foods type store in CA (please note these prices reflect the current costs at the time this post was written):
Coconut Oil
Small size (15oz) Nutiva coconut oil is $0.69 per ounce
Large size (54oz) Nutiva coconut oil is $0.47 per ounce
Savings= $0.22 per ounce
Raw Honey
Small size (16oz) Pacifica honey is $0.61 per ounce
Large size (48oz) Pacifica honey is $0.35 per ounce
Savings= $0.26 per ounce
Blanched Almond Flour
Small size (16oz) Bob’s Red Mill blanched almond flour is $10.80 per pound
Large size (5 lbs) Honeyville blanched almond flour is $6.72 per pound
Savings= $4.08 per pound
Buy Big, Save BIG!
So as you can see from the above cost comparisons, by buying larger/bulk sizes for just these three items on my shopping list, my cost savings would be about $11.54. So, per month I’d save about $46.16 and per year I’d save a minimum of $553.92. So when you do the math, it’s easy to see that in general, buying BIG is definitely the way to save BIG!
Join A Co-op & Save Even More!
I am so grateful to be in a local Azure Standard co-op. It has really helped me and my family trim down our food budget. Just as one example, I can now purchase Bob’s Red Mill blanched almond flour for just $21.35 for a 5 lb. bag. That is $6.53 less per pound than the same brand at my local market, and it’s $2.45 per pound less than what I was paying for it online.
So buying in bulk either at your local market, or via online, or even better, through a co-op, is a great way to help you trim costs on your food bill. (HOW DO I FIND A CO-OP IN MY AREA? One of the best ways is to contact your local Weston A Price Foundation Chapter and speak with the chapter leader. He/She will be able to provide you with information about any local co-ops that exist, as well as other helpful real food resources in your area.)
Again, buying larger sizes, or in bulk, is just one example of the many ways you can help curb costs to maintain your budget while enjoying healthy real foods. Employing the many other tactics outlined in “8 Tips for Real Food on a Real Budget” will also help you to further keep your budget in check.
Happy savings! Joyfully Serving HIM, Kelly