Food is something your family has to buy. But are you spending too much money on food? To be honest, most people are. Americans throw away billions of tons of food each year. BILLIONS. Are you contributing to that waste? Let’s take a closer look at some signs you spend too much money on food.

In countries like the United States and Canada, consumers waste around 40% on food! The United State alone wastes $160 billions in one year in food!

That is a lot of food and money and something that we should all be keeping track of. We need to reduce food waste and reduce how much we spend on food too.

The issue in many households is how do you know you are spending too much money on food? To answer your question there are 6 tips that will help you identify if you are spending way too much money on food and what you can do instead.

Let’s begin!

6 Signs You Spend Too Much Money on Food

First, let’s begin by saying that no family diet is alike, and you should do what is best for your family. That being said, reducing the amount of money you spend on food might be hard for many people to do since it a habit.

To make changes, start small and continue from there. Make a plan on how you are going to reduce your food budget and avoid wasting and take it from there.

Later you will be able to get a meal planning kit that will help you to start reducing your grocery budget, but that will be later!

Groceries Is Your Biggest Expense

Unless you have a huge family, groceries should not be your biggest expense each month. A family of four should not be spending more money on groceries than on their mortgage. If you are, you’re definitely spending too much.

I dislike using percentage on what you should be spending budget wisely on food since again, your family is different and food cost around the country varies.

Your food spending shouldn’t be more than your mortgage and that is a fact. Well, unless you are mortgage free, but you know what I mean?

Take the time to look at your spending and find out where you are with your food spending.

You’re Throwing Away Food

Do you find yourself throwing away food each week? Do you clean out your fridge and pantry and have several things to toss? You’re spending too much money. You’re either buying more than your family can eat before it goes bad or you’re buying things that your family doesn’t like. Stop wasting money on food that won’t get eat.

To help you, keep track of your pantry, fridge, and freezer inventory to avoid throwing food away. When you know what you already have and what needs to be used right away you will eliminate wasting food and money away.

Your Pantry Is Full of Processed Foods

Processed foods are not healthy for your family. And, guess what. Making foods from scratch can be so much cheaper. Yes, it takes time.

But the reality is that it doesn’t help you save money at all. Many processed foods are not a good deal when it comes to saving money, making a homemade meal is.

Making your meal not only saves money, but it allows you to feed your family healthier meals. Take the time to make more from scratch.

You Shop for Prepped Foods

Those slices of watermelon and fruit trays sure look good and all the work has already been done. The same goes for the meat department where you can find thinly sliced steak for stir fry or chicken kabobs ready to grill.

The problem is that these foods can be super expensive. You’re paying for these conveniences. Stop!

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You Don’t Know What’s a Good Deal

Do you know what groceries should really cost? What’s a good deal for a pound of chicken breast? What’s a good deal for a box of cereal?

If you have no idea, then you’re probably spending too much money. Pay attention to grocery sales and sales run in cycles.

This means that chicken, for example, may be on sale every three weeks. Knowing this allows you stock up enough until it goes back on sale.

Know what to seasonal items go on sale and take advantage of that. During the fall, canning and baking goods tend to go on sale, take advantage of those sales to stock up with items you need and are planning to use.

You Feel Like You Don’t Have Anything to Eat

If you have just gone grocery shopping but then have no idea what to fix for dinner, you’re probably spending too much money.

One way to stop this is to create a menu plan. Go through what you have on hand before you go shopping and then build a menu plan that uses up what you have. This will drastically cut down on how much money you spend.

Download The Weekly Menu Planner

When you sign up to receive our newsletter you will get this free digital download to help you start planning your meals and help you stop wasting money on food and eliminate the time you spend in the kitchen.

This free weekly family meal plan comes with:

• Pantry Checklist
• Fridge Inventory List
• Freezer Inventory List
• Weekly Meal Planning Sheet
• Weekly Shopping List

Groceries can be expensive. However, many people are spending more than they have to. If you find yourself wondering how you spend so much yet have so little, you need to reevaluate how you shop for groceries. You can feed your family, and feed them well, without overspending.

Your turn: You learned the signs you spend too much money on food now we want to know what are your thoughts and tips about this topic. Share them with us!