Saving on the grocery bill

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Last month I linked to an article that listed three ways to save on your grocery bill. Based on an article in the Wall Street Journal it seems a lot of people are finding that during this time of economic uncertainty, by buying store brand products they can save a substantial amount of money, without sacrificing quality. Store brand or generic brand products have been around for quite some time, but mainly due to quality, most people have decided to stick with name-brand. We live in a society that encourages you to always go with the best and that unless the product has been seen recently on a commercial it just can’t be good.

To be sure, overall sales of name-brand goods are still higher than those of store brands. Still, about 40% of primary household shoppers said they started buying store-brand paper products because “they are cheaper than national brands,” according to a September report by market-research company Mintel International, which interviewed 3,000 consumers. Nearly 25% of respondents reported that it is “really hard to tell the difference” between national brands and store brands of paper products. Store brands on average cost 46% less than name-brand versions, Mintel found.

There is a great Bible verse that may help you be willing to try store brand products. It comes from I Timothy 5:8, and basically challenges each of us to make sure we are providing for our families:

But if anyone does not provide for his own, and especially for those of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.

If it has been some time since you last tried store brand products now is the perfect time to readjust your opinion of this fabulous option. If you only bought one-quarter of your groceries using store brand instead of name-brand products the savings for the year would be substantial. And with the price of gas going down, if you could cut your grocery bill also, you will be able to enjoy the upcoming Christmas season just a little bit more.