FOOD IS ONE OF THE HARDEST OUT-OF-POCKET EXPENSES TO CONTROL ESPECIALLY IF YOU SHOP WITHOUT A PLAN

 

It’s budget time again, but how much is your monthly grocery bill going to cost you in the new year? Find out how to fine-tune your 2018 Grocery Budget and control food expenses to take a bit of the stress off your shoulders.

Typical grocery costs per month will differ from person to person depending on many factors such as size of the family, income level, health and special diets and so on. Although our food budget for 2017 looks to be on track, it was no easy feat.

Since beginning the keto diet after pregnancy Mrs. CBB and I have both made significant changes to the way we eat. We’ve learned so much the past 2 years of keto-living and healthy clean eating that we would like to pursue this again with our 2018 grocery budget.

What does that mean for the CBB 2018 Grocery Budget?

Ultimately it means our 2018 grocery budget will need to go up slightly even though we’d like to believe we can still make ends meet with our current budget of $265 each month. The little bit extra will help fund food increases but offer a few extra options which we found increased our monthly expenses.

We’re aiming for the $280-300 a month mark in 2018 coupled with our rewards program points and stockpile budget of $25 a month. More to come on this in an exciting upcoming blog post in 2018.

 

Bulk buying and gas savings

 

Costco has been a great source of savings for our family in 2017 especially for many of the keto-diet staples such as cream, salami, cheese, almond flour, olive oil, nuts and so on. The biggest savings is with the gas which makes the small membership cost well worth it for us. That, and we have a toddler who will likely start to eat more in 2018 until he moves out which could be a long time from now.

Related: Is a Costco Membership worth the money?

What does this mean for us? It means we will continue to utilize the over 200 grocery shopping blog posts with tonnes of savings tips to keep our grocery budget on track. The best part about having these informative posts at our fingertips is that they serve as a reminder and in some cases a boost of motivation.

We all fall off the food wagon at some point. It happens.

 

What to expect in 2018 at the grocery store?

 

Like every other year our 2018 grocery budget will see prices rise up particularly in the produce department.

This may be a great year to consider starting that vegetable garden you’ve always wanted. Planing fruit trees on your property if space permits is another great way to have fresh organic fruit during the summer. This will also allow you to keep any that don’t get used up for use over the colder months of the year.

Related: How to spot grocery store discounts?

 

Creating your 2018 Grocery Budget

 

Without a doubt the MOST popular search and questions asked on Canadian Budget Binder venture back to the grocery budget. Why? We love to eat and with that we tend to spend far more money on food than we can actually afford. Our biggest hit for 2018 will be in the produce department according to a recent Food Study by the University of Guelph and Dalhousie University.

Canadians will spend more money than ever before in restaurants and on convenience foods in 2018, and pay higher prices for vegetables and fruits in grocery stores, according to a new report from the University of Guelph and Dalhousie University. Source– University of Guelph

Related: Canada’s Food Price Report 2018

In 2018, food prices in Canada are expected to rise 1% –3%. Annual food expenditure for a family of 4 is expected to rise by $348 to a total of $11,948 in 2018.

Eating away from the home in 2018 is expected to rise 8% which means either you accept the increase or start eating more at home and preparing food while you are on the go.

Anyone who eats out does it simply because they don’t want to cook, don’t know how to cook or wants to try something new and exciting. We’re the same as everyone else but having an allowance and entertainment budget certainly helps us control the urge to stay out of the kitchen.

Related: How many budget categories should I have?

You might be that one person who likes to have company or be around people when they eat but you have to understand how much this will affect your overall finances for the year.

The average family is expected to spend $208 more when eating out.

Categories	Expected Price Increases
Restaurants	4% to 6%
Dairy	0% to 2%
Fruits	1% to 3%
Bakery	0% to 2%
Meats	0% to 2%
Vegetables	4% to 6%
Seafood	0% to 2%
Food	1% to +3%

Source: Canada Food Price Report 2018.

 

Minimum Wage Increase and Food Costs

 

In the new year we will see the anticipated 2018 minimum wage increase from $11.60/hr to $14/hr which has already had retailers small and large scrambling to but a plan in place. By this I mean, how this will affect their bottom-line and who will pay the price for this increase.

Likely we won’t see too high of a food price increase but be prepared to pay more and find that shops are having to take a different approach to serving customers. By January 2019 the $14 minimum wage will be bumped to $15 where it will stay, for now.

A great example of this will be the joining of the Shoppers Optimum Points and the PC Plus Points beginning February 01, 2018. The new program name will be the PC Optimum. This will open up the program for Loblaws and customers which will allow them even further reach with their points, thus potentially more customers. With almost 2 million points combined Mrs. CBB and I both know that this will be a BIG deal for our family especially since we love collecting points.

 

Pick a budget that works for you

 

A smart budget starts with a basic budget that covers all of your monthly essentials. An even smarter budget will go a step further just to make sure everything you need makes the budget list cut-off. Some of you reading this might say that even having a grocery budget is a waste of time but we beg to differ.

Related: How much should my retirement grocery budget be?

Over the past 5 years of running the grocery game challenge we’ve had plenty of ups and downs circling our grocery budget BUT we’ve always come out ahead. The reason, because we cared enough to make sure we had a handle on our budget. The worst mistake people do is wait until it’s too late or feel like tracking expenses is a waste of time.

In 2018 the only prices I predict we will see at a particularly competitive price are the loss leaders that we’ve all come to love. This is your milk, eggs, butter, flour, bread and anything you see on those big banners on the wall of your favourite grocery store (won’t be undersold) or on the front and back pages of your grocery flyers.

Related: The best grocery stores in Canada to shop at

Loss leaders are those products that grocers bank on to get customers through the doors. Everything else just sort of falls into place for them especially if the customer doesn’t put focus or enough focus on their financial expenditures week after week. They love you.

What do I mean? This means that in 2018 we are going to see food price increases although many price watchers have already seen and felt the increase happening the past few months.

Mrs. CBB and I have been collectively watching prices on food go up and it’s affecting our food bill to the point where we will see an increase in our grocery budget for 2018 as mentioned above.

 

Check Off The Food Budget Check-List for 2018

 

Every year around this time I like to do a bit of housekeeping with our grocery budget. This also means we are nearing the end of our grocery game journey which will give us numbers to work with for the new year. For those of you who are new to grocery shopping savings and want to fine-tune the way you shop start by going through a few simple checklist items to start the year off right.

• Conduct a Food Budget Review

Some people spend FAR MORE money on groceries than they need to like one CBB fan who chopped her $1100 grocery shopping budget to a manageable $600 a month in less than 6 months.

Related: How I decreased my grocery budget from $1100 to $600 in 6 months

• Know your Grocery Budget

If you are on a tight budget or simply want to pull in the strings when it comes to your food expenses in 2018 you will want to know how much your grocery budget should be. By this I mean sitting down and doing some financial calculations that will change your overall monthly budget dramatically, especially if you’ve never used a food budget before.

• Calculate Your Monthly Food Costs

Typical grocery costs per month will differ from person to person depending on many factors such as size of the family, income level, health and special diets and so on.

• Know your luxury food limit

We all enjoy a bit of luxury once in a while especially when it involves our taste-buds however these expenses can eat into the grocery budget.

Grocery shopping is not for everyone but for those of you who must endure it you should know what you can and cannot afford. The problem is that not everyone understands how luxury food purchases will affect the overall shop.

• What’s on the menu?

We created a weekly menu plan in 2017 and although we didn’t always stick to it we managed to make it work for us. Just because you skip a meal or change your mind doesn’t mean that menu planning is not worth the effort. In 2018 do yourself a favour and see if a menu plan makes your shopping and cooking experiences a little less stressful.

One of your best resources besides having a grocery budget and reading this blog happens in your pantry, refrigerator and freezer. Wherever you stash food or stockpile food you should keep an inventory list. You can get find all sorts of free printable lists in my free guide and trust me you’ll save even more money once you track what you’ve got.

No more freezer burnt food and food waste will become a thing of the past. Get used to knowing more about the way you eat and what goes in your mouth when designing your 2018 grocery budget.

Overall, like every year we will see price increases at the grocery store but if you apply many of the grocery shopping tips I’ve given to you that works for our family I hope you too will see better results for your budget.

Discussion Question:  CONTEST- What are some grocery store or food topics you’d like to see covered on Canadian Budget Binder in 2018? Submit your questions below in the comment section to be entered to win a PC gift card by January 8. I will review all responses that are detailed questions. By this I mean not one or two words.

Get an EXTRA ballot for commenting and Sharing the Facebook post! If you do let me know who you are so I add the extra ballot to your name. 

Check out our full Free Recipe Index on CBB for tonnes of recipes including Gluten-free, Sugar-free, Low-carb/keto-friendly.

 

December Grocery Game Challenge

 

Join in the 2017 Grocery Game Challenge (GGC) fun and post your grocery shop in the comment section of each GGC blog post. Here are The Grocery Game Challenge rules to get you started and where you’ll also find a link for the 2017 GGC schedule. Please feel free to download, save and even print the schedule.

Post your shop and you can be next.

Note: I missed last weeks GGC post as I was away so post both last weeks shop and this weeks shop in the comment section of this post please. Thanks.

New monthly prize: See the Grocery Game Rules

• How to ask your cashier to apply SCOP
• The Ultimate Guide for Holiday Christmas Desserts
• The Ultimate Guide of Economical Christmas Drinks

 

 

2017 Grocery Shop Results

 

Yearly grocery budget for two + 1 Toddler 2017: $3180 or $265/month (The above total does not include the stockpile budget of $300/year or $25/month.Points Overview (add any other sections you need to show us your savings)

• Total Grocery Budget for this Month: $265
  
• Total Grocery Budget with any carry-overs $265
  
• Total Gift Cards used to date: $0
• Total Rewards Points redeemed this week: $0
• Total Rewards Points used to date: $0
• PC Points Plus Earned to date: 750,000
  
• Scanning Code of Practice (SCOP) to date $0
• Shoppers Optimum: 995,000 points
  

Coupon Apps (add any other apps you use to save money)

• Zweet to cash out : $18.25… no idea where the money went but it seems we have $0.
  
• Checkout51 to cash out : $24.50 we cashed out so we’re back at 0.
  

 

Our Grocery Shop This Week

 

Zehrs

• 2 x Sealtest Milk $4.27 each
• Pack of Smarties $1.00

Total Out-of-Pocket $9.67

 

Note: All totals below already have tax factored into them.

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