(NewsNation) — With consumer prices rising 3.2% year over year this past month, Americans are looking for ways to save — especially when it comes to the grocery store.
Recent federal data revealed that Americans are spending more on food than they have in over 30 years. Consumers in the U.S. are spending 11% of their disposable income on food — the highest it has been since 1991, The Wall Street Journal reported.
Although price growth has receded considerably in the past year, inflation remains above the Federal Reserve’s 2% target. Plus, companies have raised the costs of goods to meet inflation rates.
Price gouging has been most evident with food and now, consumers are pushing back. Inflation is changing the way Americans shop. Consumers are fed up with prices that remain about 19%, on average, above where they were before the pandemic.
Smart shopping expert Trae Bodge shared some tips and tricks for how to save on groceries on NewsNation’s “Morning in America” with Hena Doba.
A good place to start when looking for ways to save is by checking online or store circulars for coupons and savings, Bodge said. Clipping coupons can be a great way to save a few bucks here and there. Over time, those savings will add up.
With “skrinkflation,” a seemingly covert way for companies to raise prices by ever so slightly reducing the size of their products, Americans are paying more for less product. There are suddenly fewer pretzels in the bag, less toothpaste in the tube and shorter candy bars.
Now, consumers are turning to private-label options to save money. They are also switching to discount stores or simply buying fewer items like snacks or gourmet foods.
Bodge explained that a good way to avoid being jipped by brands exercising this practice is to buy store brand products over name brands.
“Our favorite brand name products get smaller and smaller. So this is really a time to look at store brands. There are so many great store brands out there. Many of the products are made in the same factories as your favorite brands,” she explained. “Now is the time to make that switch because it’s significantly cheaper to buy the store brand versus the name brand.”
Another way for consumers to get the most bang for their buck is to buy in bulk. However, Bodge said it’s important to only do this for nonperishable items: canned goods, pasta and things like paper products.
She recommended avoiding buying perishable items in bulk unless consumers have a large family.
“Those fruits and vegetables, like that giant tub of microgreens, that’s going to get soft in the middle if you don’t have four people eating that for the first couple of days,” she explained.
It’s also important to be mindful of how consumers are paying for their groceries, Bodge said.
“Be mindful of how you pay,” Bodge said. “Some of your credit cards will give you 2% cashback on your food purchases, others might give you 4% cashback. That’s another way to kind of manage prices.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
