{"id":180468,"date":"2025-12-12T16:41:21","date_gmt":"2025-12-12T16:41:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/180468\/"},"modified":"2025-12-12T16:41:21","modified_gmt":"2025-12-12T16:41:21","slug":"how-to-stretch-your-budget-amid-rising-grocery-prices","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/180468\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Stretch Your Budget Amid Rising Grocery Prices"},"content":{"rendered":"

\ufeffDreading the supermarket checkout these days? You\u2019re far from alone. About 7 in 10 Americans say they\u2019re spending more on groceries compared to last year, an October 2025 ABC News\/Washington Post\/Ipsos survey<\/a> found.<\/p>\n

Food prices rose 2.7 percent from September 2024 to September 2025, according to the federal Consumer Price Index. Higher labor costs for U.S. farmers, supply-chain disruptions and tariffs<\/a> on imported foods are driving up prices, says Dawn Thilmany, a professor of agricultural economics at Colorado State University.<\/p>\n

Households across the country are feeling the squeeze, says David Ortega, a food economist and professor at Michigan State University. More than half of Americans say grocery expenses are a major source of stress, according to a July 2025 survey<\/a> from the Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. \ufeff<\/p>\n

\u201cThe high cost of food is among the top concerns for Americans across the country,\u201d Ortega says. \u201cThey dominate kitchen table conversations because many households are feeling stretched thin when it comes to their budgets and the high cost of groceries.\u201d \ufeff<\/p>\n

Consumers with lower incomes are \u201chit the hardest,\u201d he adds, \u201csince they spend a larger share of their disposable income on food.\u201d<\/p>\n

To stretch their grocery dollars, many Americans are changing their shopping habits. \u201cThey\u2019re trading down to store brands<\/a> or cheaper alternatives, shopping around more, seeking value and doing more price comparisons before making purchases,\u201d Ortega says.<\/p>\n

Rising food prices don\u2019t have to blow up your budget<\/a>. Here are 14 cost-saving strategies to help lower your grocery bills<\/a>.<\/p>\n

1. Substitute lower-cost ingredients<\/p>\n

Making adjustments to some recipes can help reduce costs. Take eggs, for example: Although prices have fallen from their peak in March, a dozen large eggs still cost $3.4\ufeff9 in September, on average, up from $2.0\ufeff7 two years ago. Making baked goods with less expensive egg substitutes<\/a> like corn starch, chia seeds, flaxseed and applesauce can save money.<\/p>\n

Now might also be a good time to try plant-based proteins<\/a>, since meat prices jumped 12.3 percent from September 2024 to September 2025. Alternative protein sources such as lentils, beans and tofu often cost less than meat while still providing essential nutrients.<\/p>\n

2. Use leftovers to make soups and stews<\/p>\n

Leftovers often pile up after a big meal. Don\u2019t let them go to waste. \u201cUsing leftovers to make soups and stews is a win-win for your wallet and your time,\u201d says Jess Rice, recipe development manager at meal-planning website Budget Bytes. \u201cYou\u2019re getting another full meal or two out of ingredients you\u2019ve already paid for.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Almost any cooked ingredient can find a second home in a pot of soup or stew. \u201cThose bits of cooked veggies, rice, beans or roasted chicken you might otherwise toss can come together to make something new and delicious,\u201d Rice says.<\/p>\n

3. Do a \u2018pantry challenge\u2019<\/p>\n

This is another way to reduce waste. Commit to using all the food that you have in your pantry, refrigerator and freezer before buying more. See how long you can go without going to the grocery store.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\ufeffDreading the supermarket checkout these days? You\u2019re far from alone. About 7 in 10 Americans say they\u2019re spending…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":180469,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[11232,114855,138,246,58027,62256,114856,114854,114858,111,139,69,244,245,114853,62255,114857],"class_list":{"0":"post-180468","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-personal-finance","8":"tag-budgeting","9":"tag-build-a-budget","10":"tag-business","11":"tag-finance","12":"tag-grocery-prices","13":"tag-grocery-shopping","14":"tag-how-to-make-your-grocery-budget-stretch","15":"tag-how-to-stretch-your-budget","16":"tag-how-to-stretch-your-grocery-budget","17":"tag-new-zealand","18":"tag-newzealand","19":"tag-nz","20":"tag-personal-finance","21":"tag-personalfinance","22":"tag-stretch-food-budget","23":"tag-supermarket-prices","24":"tag-tips-to-stretch-your-food-budget"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/180468","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=180468"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/180468\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/180469"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=180468"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=180468"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=180468"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}