This is the Part 5 in a series on saving money on groceries that even a very beginner can master this month. Whether or not you are trying to eat healthier,  feed your family more nutritious meals, or just get that paycheck to stretch until the next paycheck we could all save a little money on groceries. My hope that after you have learned and implemented my tips into your grocery shopping plan you will not think that eating healthy is too expensive and will be able to feed your family more nutritious meals at less than the cost of what you have in the past.

I’ve found that groceries can be a HUGE chunk out of your family’s monthly income, but with a few strategies up your sleeve you can greatly reduce that monthly cost.

In case this is the first time you have came to my blog my name is Shannah Holt and I’m a mom of 8 kids (and 8 furbabies; we had 9 up until a few months ago and unfortunately lost one). I’m also a SAHM that has homeschooled for about 15 years now, so living on one income and sometimes less than that with a large family I’ve had to learn the hard way how to stretch that paycheck to survive. I just want to share my tips so you don’t have to go through as much struggle as I have.

The video explains this tip really good so it would be better if you can just watch, but I will include the main points below.

Have you noticed that turkeys are cheaper in November and soup is on sale practically the whole month of January?

Not only are items on a 4-6 week sales cycle, but also at certain times of the year or months. Items go on sale or are in season as they call it different months of the year.

So you can save money by stocking up on those items when they are at their best price. For example turkeys can get down to 25c-50c per pound in November so why not buy a few if you have freezer space to keep them and have them throughout the year. It is probably cheaper than a whole chicken.

In August when there are Back to School sales I stock up on spiral notebooks at 5c each, packs of pens for 25c, and many other office supplies. I buy what I think I will use for the whole year. They won’t go bad in case you still have some left over the next year.

January is a big month of soups and typical “diet” foods so again stock up for the year.

For most of the country fruits and vegetables are only in season certain months out of the year. When they are in season that means they are at their peak. That is when they are being harvested by the farmers. There will be an abundance at this time so the price will be greatly reduced as well. Not only can you get these items for a lower price, but they will be the freshest and taste the best. For example strawberries are in season in May and June so you will find them on sale for 99c a lb where some other times of the year they will be $4 for a lb.

Produce is not easily a stock up item. You would have to purchase it then freeze it to make it last for a length of time so buying frozen is a great option. Frozen fruit and vegetables are picked at the peak and immediately frozen to keep in the nutrients so no reason not to go with those over the expensive price of buying produce in off season. In the off season it is typically also coming from another country like Chili so it is traveling a long way to get to you.

Here is a guide of when items are on sale or in season for every month of the year. I designed it so that you can print out one month at a time or all 12 months and keep it together.

Best Month to Buy What Guide

Here is also a link to the USDA list of when produce is in Season:

USDA List of When Produce is in Season