Benefits of Meal Planning (Notes from our activity)

I. Why is it important to meal plan?

1. Save money with less frequent trips to the store (on average people impulse spend $20 with each grocery store visit, if you 3 times a week and  you cut it to one, you will save $40 a week).
2. Eliminate waste (especially produce).
3. Healthier for your family to eat at home than to eat fast food or restaurants.
4. Relieves stress during the most stressful time of the day, since you know what is for dinner.
5. Couponing, though good, can be time-consuming. Generally the coupons are for name-brand foods (which are more expensive), and has you buying more processed foods.

II.  Tips for meal planning

1. Whether you plan for a week or a month, you need to look at your calendar and take into account special occasions (birthdays, family gatherings, kids' games, etc.).  This will help you know when you  need fast meals with little prep or larger, more time-intensive meals.
2. Make a list and stick to it when you are at the store.
3. Make your meal plan based upon what is on sale instead of just throwing out random recipes (everything goes on sale at some point).
4. Before shopping go through your recipes to see what you have and what you will need, so you won't have to make an extra trip to the store.
5. It is best to shop on Wednesday or Thursday, but regardless pick a day and plan your  menus.
6. Plan to eat leftovers whether it is for lunch or to freeze for another day or reinvent  them to make another meal the next night (taco soup becomes taco salad; pot roast becomes beef fajitas; grilled chicken becomes stir-fry).
7. It is always cheaper to cook from scratch.
8. Eat seasonally.
9. Consider a meal swap to build recipes or try new ones.
10. Price match to save time and money at Walmart.
11. When buying in bulk, pay attention to the price per unit.  It is not always cheaper.
12. Keep track of food prices.
13. Group recipes that use the same meats on sale. 

Thanks Laura!