Green Retirement Blog

The price of food is going up - food inflation. Sam’s Club and Costco are rationing rice. Food riots are breaking out all over the world. People are choosing between gasoline for their car and food for their table. These are the headlines from last week.

Why is food inflation such a big deal to retirees? Inflation is retirements worst enemy. People in retirement generally live on a fixed income, whether from Social Security and pensions, or from their investments. The more a retiree, has to pay for food, the less money they have for health-care and other necessities. And in this time of low interest rates, and a declining stock market, the inflation squeeze on retirees is even greater.

What can a retiree, or anyone for that matter, do to fight food inflation. Here are some suggestions:

Plant a Garden
Food Coops
Food Coupons
Bulk Food Purchasing

Plant a Garden

One way you can offset the rise in food prices is to grow your own food. Nothing tastes better than home-grown fruits and vegetables, and this is the planting season, so get started. If you have a back yard, or front yard, you have the land to use to reduce your food purchases. Visit the National Gardening Association, for tips and advice, on how to create your own home-garden. If you live in an apartment, or don’t have a back-yard, you can still grow your own food by joining a community garden. Visit the American Community Gardening Association to find a community garden near you.

Food Coops

Another way to reduce your food expenses is to join a food coop. A food coop is a member run grocery store entitling the members, in exchange for work at the coop, a discount on food purchases. If you are retired, consider donating some time to a food coop, and receiving less costly food. You can find a list of food coops in the United States by visiting the Coop Directory Service.

Food Coupons

A couple of minutes, could save you a couple of dollars, off your grocery bill. Go through your Sunday newspaper, and “junk mail”, to see if any there are any coupons for the items you regularly purchase. If there are, then you could save a little extra, on your normal purchases. A little bit, over a long period of time, adds up to a lot of savings. There is one fanatical mom, who by combining coupons with store discounts, is able to save a fanatical amount off her grocery bill.

Bulk Food Purchases

Inflation means that what you buy today, is going to cost more tomorrow, and so it makes sense to buy more today. If you purchase in bulk today, you are saving more money, than if you buy small amounts of the same item over time. Plus, buying items in bulk, is generally cheaper, than buying items in smaller amounts. Stores such as Costco and Sam’s Club specialize in selling items in bulk. Non-perishable grocery items can be bought in bulk, stuff that won’t go bad in a short period of time, saving you money as prices increase.

Food inflation is real, and I am afraid it is going to get worse, but their are things you can do to fight food inflation. Hopefully these suggestions will lessen the pain of rising food prices.

This is the Retirement Blog. Visit the Green Retirement Planning Website to discover how you can save hundreds of thousands of dollars, retire early, and help save the planet.