To stretch your food stamps, never succumb to impulse buys.
The assistance you receive from the food stamp program is commensurate with your income, family size and household bills. If that allotment is barely covering your needs, you want to employ some money-saving and cost-cutting strategies to stretch your benefits as much as possible. No matter how little you receive, you can greatly reduce your out-of-pocket expenses.
Instructions
1. Make a meal plan, whether weekly, biweekly or monthly, depending on what works for your family. When you are shopping, you do not have to use all your food stamps at once. They are yours to use in the manner appropriate for your lifestyle. When you are making the meal plan, let the grocery store's weekly circular be your guide. Build your menu around what is on sale.
2. Find as many coupons as possible that match the sale items. Combine manufacturer coupons with store sales and store coupons to increase your savings on each shopping trip. Besides your Sunday newspaper, you can find coupons on manufacturer websites and can even buy some for a handling fee from sites such as couponclippers.com.
3. Stick strictly to your list when shopping, completely spurning impulse buys. Check with your store to see when it offers double or triple coupons. This will increase your savings even more, perhaps enabling you to save those food stamps for later in the month. When you are checking out, remember to hand the cashier all your coupons and store discount card. Make sure she scans all your coupons and watch your savings add up.
Tags: your savings, food stamps, impulse buys, increase your, increase your savings, meal plan