Accepting the things we cannot change, and changing the things we cannot accept

If you haven't heard of the horsemeat scandal which is shaking the UK, here's a brief overview. Cheap minced meat from several low-priced product lines (for example 6/1pound burgers) has been found to contain horse DNA - sometimes up to 100% of the product is proven to be horse. Blame abounds, with fingers pointing at everyone from consumers to supermarkets to European mafia.

Side note: another big problem is the traces of porcine (yes, pig) DNA found in halal-branded food. That's a problem. A big problem. But outside my present argument.

In fact, food fraud seems to happen fairly frequently - we just don't realize it. I'm fairly certain the honey in my fridge (which I bought from a bulk bargain store) is actually coloured corn syrup, and I wouldn't be at all shocked that the cheapest store brand olive oil in my cupboard is just a cheap alternative. But you know what? I'm ok with that. The products serve their purpose in my food preparation. Also, I can't afford pure honey bought from a beekeeper, nor can I afford pure olive oil. I've accepted this. I'm ok with it, if not happy.

As for horsemeat, my personal view is that horsemeat must be pretty tasty if it's been passed it off as beef for so long. I personally have no problem with eating horse. However, I do have a problem when packaging says "100% beef" and the contents turns out to be Black Beauty rather than Buttercup. In England at least, the horsemeat industry is not as regulated as the beef one - the meat may contain many chemicals which may be harmful to us as consumers. This is a big problem.

If you do have an issue with eating horsemeat, then consider the wider picture. If a manufacturing company has managed to fool everyone with what animal is in their food, what else are you being tricked about? How have they managed this?

The only answer I can give is that the manufacturing chains are too damn long. We have no idea what's in our food anymore. Mostly, it's food - but what food, where, and how was it produced? We just don't know.

So we as consumers have two options:

1. We accept that we will never know what we're eating again.
2. We don't accept this, and we take steps to change.

In my case, I've accepted that some of my food is probably fake or below-standard (the honey, the oil), but I'm also taking steps to change. In my case, I'm purchasing a Community Supported Agriculture farm share (to be discussed in a future post), which will connect me directly to a local farmer. I will get fruit and vegetables every week during the spring and summer, and I can ask questions about the production methods, the fertilizers used, even what variety of vegetables they're growing.

It's also possible to get CSAs for meat, but I just don't have a big enough freezer to store half a cow or a whole pig. Sadly.

The capitalist world we live in emphasizes profit over quality. That's a shame, and it makes living on a tight budget an occasionally morally questionable practice. So my challenge to myself, to you, to the world is to choose what is acceptable and what isn't.

I've made my choices, what are yours?

Tip #21 - Take advantage of your supermarket... legally

I went food shopping today! For most people, that's a pretty boring task. But for me, it's always an adventure, even more so since I started on my $35/week budget. Delicious-looking food seems to jump off the shelves, trying to force their way into my basket, and I have to fend off the onslaught.

I've found that the best way to spend as little money as possible in the supermarket is to know my supermarket's secrets - the ins and outs of their pricing and specials, to take full and legal advantage of what they have to offer.

Of course, the most famous example of taking large-scale legal advantage of supermarkets is from the TV show Extreme Couponing. This works very well in many US states, but not so well where I live. Coupons really don't exist to the same extent, and are only offered on brand name products, and the savings are often small.

Instead I use two tricks which have served me well in both the UK and back in Canada: reduced for sale items and multibuy offers.

Reduced for sale

These items are reaching their best-before or sell-by dates, and stores need to clear them out quickly. They may be placed in a separate section, or have identifying stickers stating the percentage reduction or the new price. In England, these stickers seemed to be universally yellow, but in the supermarket nearest to me now, they're giant and pink (often covering up the product name or description!)

When buying reduced for sale items, check the best before date. This could be a few days away, but the product will still be edible even after this date. If the product has a use-by date, make sure you will consume the entire product before that date.

Any item which is reduced for sale and which can be frozen (such as meat or bread) is an even better bargain! Put the meat into a freezer bag (in portions, if it's chicken breasts or thighs, or ground meat) and stick it in the freezer until you will use it. Then, fully defrost when desired and cook it immediately. Bread will last at least a few days after defrosting.

Sometimes these reductions take place at specific times during the day or week. A few hours before closing is often a good time - as the store tries to get everything sold as fast as possible. 

Today I got lucky and found some reduced for sale yoghurt (best before the 7th) and orange juice (best before the 6th), both reduced by 50%. In fact, since the orange juice's reduction didn't go through at the check-out, I got a 100% reduction from customer services!

Multibuy offers

These can be useful, but also dangerous. Investigate the available multibuys before you get to the supermarket, either online or through the store's weekly flyer. Multibuy offers can lure you into the exhilarating feeling of getting a bargain, even when you don't need the item, and planning ahead will help you avoid these temptations.

Multibuys on pantry essentials are especially good. Stock up when the items are cheap. If there are multibuys for fresh produce, use it as an excuse to eat more fruit and vegetables or try new things. But make sure you use them! A multibuy offer is no good if the food goes to waste.

I'm having particular fun with multibuy offers in Canada, because the laws here seem to require multibuy pricing to extend to the individual items. So, for example, a 2 for $5 deal means that each item must be individually priced at $2.50 each. So my box of cereal, normally $5.58, currently on offer at 2 for $6, cost me only $3, even though I only bought one! Fantastic!


These are just two examples of ways to get the most out of your supermarket, which are well used in both Canada and the UK. Are there any tricks that you use?

Tip #13 - What's in a name?

More often than not, brand names mean you're paying for the product's name, not its contents. If you insist on buying only brand named products, you will be spending too much money.

Here are my general guidelines on buying products:

-  Think of the use of the product: Will it be used once or repeatedly? Will it be mixed in with something or eaten as-is? Will you use all of it or waste half?

- What benefit does this product offer: Do you know that your hair will be silky and smooth or does it only promise? Will your garbage be truly smell-free (unlikely...)? When mixed in, will these brand name lentils realy add extra protein above the standard lentils?

- What benefit does the company offer: Do they refuse to test on animals? Do they give back to charity or invest in the community? Have you investigated the criticisms of the company (Wikipedia is a good place for this...) and find it to still be a company you want to give money to?

- Finally, the most important question: Which is cheaper? Brand name products are more likely to have sales, which can bring the unit price below that of a store brand.

I'm a big fan of store brands, and for most products find that they are equivalent to brand name products, with a very few exceptions. One for me is a facial moisturizer from Lush, which is the only one I've found which deals with both my dry skin and my oily breakouts. Another is curry paste, which needs to be done by a reputable company which understands the balance of flavours. Yet another is salad dressing - I'm sorry, but I just love Kraft Golden Italian, and no matter what else I've tried, I can't find a suitable cheaper replacement.


Are you a brand fiend? I challenge you to take one product per week which you would normally insist on being brand named, and try the store brand version. Perhaps chopped tomatoes. Or beans. Or frozen peas. Or if you're really going out on a limb, maybe try store brand cleaning pruducts. I promise you will find some savings, if a bit difficult along the way :)

Turkey day dress(ing) rehearsal

It’s Thanksgiving in Canada!  The time of year where we say thank you for everything we have by wasting money and food.  The post-Thanksgiving food-related financial depression is only beaten by the post-Christmas one.  So here’s an idea: treat Thanksgiving as a rehearsal for Christmas.

This isn't really a tip, it's more of a suggestion because I haven't actually done this myself.  But I think it just might work and might save you a load of money.

 

Traditional Thanksgiving and traditional Christmas meals in Canada are very similar: giant turkeys, sweet potatoes, roast potatoes, roast veg, cranberry jelly, stuffing, gravy, Brussels sprouts, pumpkin pie, the list of “requirements” just goes on and on.  I put “requirements” in parentheses, because it’s important to question whether they are indeed requirements.  Is it important to have a giant turkey for just five people?  Is it important to have a whole bowl full Brussels sprouts on the table if only one person eats them?

With Thanksgiving so soon, it’s probably too late to change the preparations now.  But you have a great chance to learn from any mistakes made this time around and apply the learning to Christmas.  I’ve made an equation for you.  I call it the Turkey equation.  

 

L = (T - Te) / n , where  Te = T - Tl

L = leftovers (in kg or whichever unit is most appropriate)

T = Turkey (in kg - can be replaced by any other food item, in whichever unit is most appropriate)

Te = Turkey eaten (can equally be replaced by any other food item)

Tl = Turkey left (can still be replaced by any other food item)

n = number of people eating.

The idea is to bring L as close to 0 as possible.  Unless you’re absolutely madly in love with Turkey leftovers sandwiches, and can eat them for the rest of your life, in which case your goal is probably to maximise L for those items but minimize it for others. 

Example 1.  Say you have 24 Brussels sprouts (T = 24), and only your great aunt Agnes likes to eat them (n = 1).  But great aunt Agnes is 94 and has the stomach the size of a quarter, so can only manage 2 of them (Te = 2).  You’re left with L = 22.  Problem!  We want to minimize this!   

Solution: make fewer Brussels sprouts.  Perhaps present them on an individual plate for great aunt Agnes, all pretty and garnished, so she feels special and included.  Maybe include an extra one for each child under 18, so you can threaten to make them eat them. 

Example 2.  You have a 60 lb turkey.  You have 50 guests over, which you would think would mean the 60 lb bird would be perfect for.  But 25 of them have become vegetarian over the past year, and suddenly your n is cut in half, leaving you with masses and masses of leftover turkey. 

Solution: Rethink your Christmas needs.  You’ll need to get a smaller turkey and provide a vegetarian alternative.  It’s too late for Thanksgiving – but don’t throw away that turkey!  Make turkey pasta sauces, turkey casserole, turkey soup, turkey stir fry, and freeze them for consumption over the next month.  But save some for sandwiches.

Example 3. You are super-thrifty and only bought one can of cranberry jelly because traditionally your family doesn’t use much of it.  But this year your two kids taste cranberry jelly and suddenly decide they like it and could pretty much eat it with a spoon.  That leaves you with L = -1; in other words, you’re missing a can.

Solution: Canned cranberry jelly doesn’t go off, so make sure you have an extra one available.  Only open one at first, but keep the others close by, just in case jelly lovers come over for dinner.  If they don’t, you can save them for next year.  It’s a better solution than opening two and dumping one and a half at the end.

So, by calculating your equations carefully, you can reduce your leftover nightmares and your financial loss and still have a great turkey dinner with all the real requirements. 

Alternatively, do what my family is doing: have a meal that everyone loves, and to hell with tradition.  In our case, it’s ham, scalloped potatoes, and apple pie for dessert.  Yum!!!

Happy Turkey (ham?) day!

Tip #5 – Liquid Savings

I’m going to say something shocking.  You might not want to hear it.  One of the main ways I save money is by….

drinking tap water

That’s right, tap water.  Not bottled, not filtered, but straight from the tap.  This is obviously only applicable if you live in an area where tap water is drinkable – but that’s the majority of the developed world.  Even when I visited China, where it was impossible to drink the tap water, tea was given free at restaurants, and boiling water was provided in most public places, including trains.  So bottled water was unnecessary!

I could go on and on about the health benefits of drinking water.  They’re enormous.  It’s sugar-free, fat-free, chemical-free (well, that’s debatable), but this is a blog about saving money.  The fact is it costs nothing to drink tap water.  Granted, many countries charge for water delivery to houses, but the cost is minimal compared with juice, coffee, tea, or (heaven forbid!) soft drinks. 

I’m going to go further, now, so bear with me.

Don’t drink alcohol.

Seriously.  It’s the most expensive thing you could possibly drink.  Simply cutting out alcohol will lower monthly outgoings significantly. 

I realize that this is all extremely horrifying, and you may be unwilling to go fully over to the “unflavoured” side.  So I have a couple of solutions:

1 – If you’re super-unwilling to drink straight tap water, or it’s not possible to do so, buy a simple water filter like Brita, OR fill large bottles with water from a source which you know is safe.  I did this throughout first year university when the water in my residence tasted horrible, and it’s a standard trick for people who have cottages or boats where the water comes straight from a lake.  As an added bonus, you don’t have to pay for filling up your water bottles from a public place J

2 – If you’re unwilling to completely forego the alcohol, set yourself a nightly limit.  Mine is usually 10 in whatever currency the country I'm in uses ($10, ₤10, €10… adjustable for different countries) and I don’t go above it.  That’s usually one or two drinks.  Nurse those for the length of the night, and you won’t feel hard done by AND you’ll save money AND you won’t get a hangover.  Win-win-win in my books.

3 – If you’re a soda- or juice-junky, I suggest you do your arithmetic.  Find out how much you spend on your liquid addiction each month by writing down the price of each drink you buy - in a restaurant, corner store, or supermarket.  Tot up the amount at the end of the month.  Have a minor heart attack.  Resolve to reduce the amount spent on it by drinking more tap water.