When my children were young we had several tactics to save on groceries:
a. We clipped coupons
b. We kept a grocery price book to track the cost per ounce of groceries we bought.
c. We shopped the grocery store sales & bought the good deals.
d. We bought bread at the day old thrift stores.
e. When we found one, we went shopping at salvage grocery stores.
There was something heartwarming about buying a $3.00 box of cereal for $1.00 to $1.50 and it really saved our family with six of us to feed. We didn't care if the box had a crunched corner or a rip in the cardboard because we only ate from the sealed liner inside.
Buying our cans of beans, corn and fruit for 1/2 the store prices was great, even if, some of the cans were dented or had a tear in a label. What counted to us was what was inside the can.
What counted most of all to me, when shopping at a salvage grocery store, was when we checked out. We were always surprised out how little we had spent on our cart full of groceries.
How do you find a salvage grocery store?
In the past people usually found these stores through word of mouth. Usually a discount grocery lets their bargain pricing spread through word of mouth or small ads in neighborhood papers. We have a new directory at discountgroceryandmore.com where we list all the salvage and discount groceries nationwide for free.
Is it safe to buy discount or salvage groceries?
As people shop at my store I see two kinds of people. Customer A may look for an expiration date and never buy anything that is out of date at all. Customer B either, never looks at these dates or simply makes sure the item is not more than a year out of date.
Expiration Dates
There is a little confusion about these dates. The only things Federally required to be discard on certain dates are baby formula and baby foods. Other items with dates like best if used by and use before or best flavor if used by dates are put there by the manufacturer. This is done to either cause the grocer to price food so it sells or as a means to rotate stock.
Most of us have out of date foods in our cupboards we've been consuming over the years without realizing it. Some things like milk and potato chips do go stale after going past their expiration by a few days or a few weeks. Canned foods usually last a long time past these dates as do many boxed foods.
What about dented cans?
Usually a small dent is not a concern. The only dents that concern the USDA, who regulates these stores, are dents of the seals on the top of a can or on a side seam. I have eaten many of these cans of, not allowed to be sold food. I have had only one can I opened that was bad. I have occasionally thrown away a couple cans that were bulging as we sorted through a load of groceries.
There are a lot of these groceries that turn up in food pantries through agreements with, and, or donations from food chains. There are some food pantries setting up their own stores to buy these groceries and provide them to the folks who need them desperately.
If you have never shopped at a discount grocery, try one, you may be pleasantly surprised. If you have questions or concerns just ask the owners and their employees. They will be glad to help you. Most salvage stores I know of have a, it's no problem attitude, if you ever buy something that doesn't meet your expectation, they'll exchange it or refund your money.
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