Families cope with rising food costs
Lynn Wells makes banana bread when the fruit on her counter turns too ripe, serves more leftovers and makes mashed potatoes instead of the kind from a box.
"I utilize several meals from one. I may make a big meatloaf and serve it over two days," she said.
The Lake County shopper compares food prices and visited an Aldi discount grocery store for the first time in an effort to make a dent in her grocery bill.
With food prices increasing at the fastest rate in 17 years and gas prices at record-high levels, families are finding ways to save a few bucks wherever they can, according to a study from the NPD Group in Port Washington, N.Y.
About 56 percent of those surveyed said they were using up leftovers. Nearly the same said they were preparing more meals at home compared with a year ago.
Rising food costs could become a larger problem than towering oil prices for the economy because the average household spends three times as much on food as for gasoline. Food makes up more than 10 percent of household spending compared with about 4 percent for gasoline.
Analysts expect food prices to keep going up and shoppers will find more ways to save -- from using coupons to buying store-brand merchandise.
"There's a very substantial change taking place in the way the consumer shops for groceries," said George Rosenbaum, analyst at Chicago-based retail research firm Leo J. Shapiro and Associates Inc.
Families are going out to eat less and not buying prepared foods that have grown in popularity over the last 15 years. "The kitchen is now being rediscovered as a place where you prepare meals," Rosenbaum said.
Susan Vrenios of Hawthorn Woods said her family of seven doesn't eat out more than once a month. With a monthly food bill of about $700, she looks for sales and heads to discount stores.
"I have been shopping at several stores to maximize my food dollar." Needing seven gallons of milk a week, she finds Aldi has the best price for milk. She then heads across the street in Lake Zurich to Entenmann's Bakery Outlet where she buys 12 loaves of bread for $12. That lasts about 10 days.
Bread prices have been skyrocketing as part of the controversy over government price supports for corn production. The federal government is paying subsidies to farmers to promote production of corn, which is used to produce ethanol fuel. That has driven farmers to shift their crops from wheat to corn, driving up the price of flour.
The Consumer Price Index from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics shows the price for a loaf of bread at $1.35 in March, a 30 percent spike from $1.04 just two years ago.
The hike in food prices has altered the way Wells shops. "I look for the best buys, check the newspapers and clip coupons," she said.
An advertisement for produce at Aldi drove the woman with grown children to the store. "The prices here are so much better. I'll tell my friends about it," said Wells, while holding an assortment of products in her arms, later grabbing a shopping cart to finish her trip.
"We're seeing a lot of new customers," said Chris Hewitt, an Aldi vice president for Wisconsin and parts of Illinois. He points to a new TV advertising campaign and more people feeling the pinch when it comes to food costs as reasons for the increase in customers.
Aldi, and a growing number of discounters with the same philosophy, benefit in this economy, analysts say. "Aldi has very high quality private labels," Rosenbaum said.
In addition, more families are planning meals in advance to avoid multiple trips to the store. "Even more than before, on the weekends, I'm trying to plan out the week's dinners," said Julie Eugenis of Mundelein.
And more of a focus is placed on not throwing away food at her home. The mother of two boys jokes that she's even become a "stickler" about the kids drinking the milk left in their cereal bowls.