We went and picked up our food co-op order on Saturday, and I must say we are pleased with the food that we received.
Here is the breakdown of what I ordered and received:
- 6 lbs. chicken breasts
- 3 lbs. beef stew meat
- 3 lbs. pork spare ribs
- 3 lbs. lean ground beef
- 10 lbs. red potatoes
- 6 lbs. oranges
- 4 lbs. Granny Smith apples
- 2 bunches green onions
- 2 heads red leaf lettuce
- 6 (jumbo!) artichokes
- 1 lb. mushrooms (only half are displayed in the picture)
- 16 kiwi (only 1/2 are displayed in the picture)
- 2 loaves Stone Ground's Artisan wheat bread
- 2 lbs. medium grain rice
I went to a local grocery store (Smith's/Kroger) today to price match these items there, just to see how much I was actually saving by buying these products through the co-op. The prices I looked up at Smith's were the regular prices, not sale prices. If I were to buy all the items above at Smith's at regular price, I would be paying $95.57. I purchase the above for $59.00. That's a savings of $36.57 (38.27%). Not too bad. It's not great compared to the savings (60-75%) I can usually get on a grocery shopping trip, but there are other factors to consider.
- Smith's has pretty good prices compared to other stores.
- The meat and the fresh produce are usually the most expensive part of a grocery purchase.
- There are usually no coupons for meat and fresh produce.
- Much of this is locally grown, and is ultra-fresh.
- The big savings items that I get at the store are usually the non-perishables (soups, canned veggies, etc), household (tp, cleansers, detergents, etc), and occasionally some refridgerated items (Pillsbury, yogurts, sour creams). These are usually the items that I get for pennies on the dollar matching sales with coupons, and it is these that balance out the purchase of meats and produce to equal the average savings of 60+%.
