by Julie Hall

Buying bulk is a great way to lower your food bill, eat better, and give the planet a break. You can buy bulk in two ways:

1. Buy larger quantities.
2. Buy from the bulk food section.

Buying Bulk Quantities

First, you can purchase larger sizes of items you eat a lot of often for relatively lower prices. For example, a can of organic stewed tomatoes at my local market sells for $4.34 per pound at the 14.5-ounce size and $3.29 per pound at the 28-ounce size. Though most large sizes are proportionately a better deal, not all are, so make sure to look at units of weight and price so you aren’t comparing apples to oranges. But remember, when you buy something you are still spending money, and if you buy more of something than you will actually use before it spoils or goes stale you are wasting both money and food.

Buying from the Bulk Food Section

The second way to buy bulk is in the bulk food section. Most stores have them these days, and if you’re not familiar with the way they work take some time to look around and find out. Usually there are bags available that you scoop food into from bins. Then you write the number of the food item on the twist tie that you close the bag with. Presto, you have mastered the process! There are four great things about the bulk section:

1. The prices are usually much better than those of prepackaged items on shelves.
2. The foods are often in their raw, unprocessed and therefore most healthy form.
3. Packaging waste is reduced.
4. Processing resources, such as water, paper, electricity, and shipping fuel, are reduced.

From lentils to pasta and walnuts to dried apples, you can find inexpensive, whole, less processed, and often organic options in the bulk food section. For example, at my local market, organic rolled oats sell for $1.19 per pound in the bulk section and $2.45 per pound prepacked. Things like beans are an even better deal. Dry organic black beans sell for $1.19 per pound in bulk, whereas cooked organic black beans are $1.91 per pound in cans. Considering that dry beans go much farther when cooked, this is a dramatic price difference. Furthermore, soaking and cooking your own beans, though a little more work, is healthier than eating canned beans, which typically contain canning chemicals, preservatives, and added salt.

For those of you who already frequent the bulk food section, take another look around. Are there items you didn’t realize you could buy there for less than in the aisles, such as peanut butter, tea, sea salt, spices, or chocolate? If you take a thorough look around, you are likely to see more opportunities to save money on regular purchases. At my market, organic green tea, for example, is $29.99 per pound in bulk and $42.60 per pound in the regular aisles. Use the lower prices of the bulk food section as a motivator to cut back on highly processed and packaged foods and add more healthy whole foods to your diet. It is important to realize that the number one predictor of health, above income, is how much you eat home-cooked food versus prepared food.

Image by Julie Hall.

©2009 ProgressiveKid

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