Contest Winner Shares Thrifty Shopping Tips
The cost of food is taking a huge bite out of family budgets, which are already stretched to the max.
So, over the summer, "All You" magazine gave its readers a challenge, asking who could feed their families best on a limited budget.
The winner: Sara Vander Zee of Grand Rapids, Mich. CBS 2's Susan Carlson reports on how she's not only saving money but also eating healthier.
Sara and her husband were $16,000 in debt, and their $200-a-week food budget wasn't helping matters.
But then she discovered the "All You" grocery challenge. Sara's task: find ways to eat better while spending less than $125 per week.
Almost overnight, everything changed.
"It's like a challenge to see how cheap I can make something from scratch," Vanderzee says.
Instead of stopping in the cookie aisle, Sara now buys fresh produce on sale.
Rather than eating out, she's dusted off her crock pot and bread-maker. And she found other ways to save.
Among them:
-- freezing fruits and vegetables for later use
-- searching online for recipes, instead of buying cookbooks
-- doubling the batch while mixing a meal.
During the challenge, Sara spent just $60 a week, less than half her budget and a third of what she used to spend. This month, "All You" magazine declared Sara the winner.
While the Vander Zee family certainly welcomes the $1,000 prize, their real reward is a more beneficial way of eating.
"I'm finally starting to realize that cooking and baking from scratch, it saves a lot of money, but it is definitely offering healthier choices, too," Sara said.
Here are some other tips from contestants. Pay cash. Go shopping once a week, and stick to your list to save money.
