Did you know that over the past 12 months, the cost of groceries has increased by 13.1%? If you weren’t aware, your budget probably is! The cost of everyday food items like flour, eggs, meat, and produce are increasing at rates faster than we have seen in decades. This type of thing can be troubling and even anxiety-provoking as families reorder their budgets to account for these changes in food prices. Let’s go over 5 ways to offset inflation and help alleviate some of that anxiety and stress that can occur with the ebbs and flow of the economy.

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5 WAYS TO OFFSET INFLATION

1. Build Up A Short-term Storage

Build up a short-term storage (also referred to as a “working pantry”) by using “The Rule of 3” . This is a tried and true method that works on any budget. As the economy ebbs and flows, it is still something you can budget for. You’ll be amazed at how quickly you build up your food storage, and how often having extra items on hand comes in handy!

2. Learn to Grow Your Own Foods

Learn how to grow your own foods. Whether it is a small herb garden in your window seal, utilizing your back patio, or a designated garden space in your backyard – being able to grow your own foods can reduce the amount of money you spend at the grocery store each week.

Have you ever seen these planters from GreenStalk Garden before? If your space is limited (even if it’s not) these things are pretty neat!

3. Pull Out Cash & Build Up Your Emergency Cash Reserve

Get into the habit of pulling out cash once a week. We won’t get into all the reasons in this post, but just know that whether you are pulling out $1, $5, $10, $20, or $100 each week, that it all adds up! Pull out what you can and set it aside for a rainy day. For some people, rising food prices is that rainy day. Despite what a lot of financial gurus may say, having cash is a GOOD thing!

4. Coupon & Buy Items on Sale

Want to hear a secret? I used to dumpster dive for coupons! Okay, okay, that sounds way worse than it was. The dumpster was only filled with cardboard and newspapers. I wouldn’t have done it otherwise. But the coupons… oh the coupons! We found so many!

Here is another secret about coupons – did you know you can actually make money using coupons?! Maybe one day we can go into more detail on that! Coupons might not seem like much, but just like with pulling out cash, it all adds up!

5. Reduce or Eliminate the Nonessentials

I’m pretty sure that every single one of us have the ability to turn just about anything into a “need” or an ”essential item” IF we really WANT it. Just ask my husband how good I am at this one. Better yet, ask your spouse if you have this talent too. 😉

I’m not here to tell you what your nonessentials are, but I do encourage you to give it some thought. Are there subscriptions that can be cancelled? Extracurricular activities that be be paused or reduced? Coffee or soda runs that might need to be slowed down? A trip that needs to be postponed?

I know these things don’t sound very fun, but thinking through and eliminating or reducing your nonessentials can make a big difference in your budget when dealing with inflation and a fragile economy.

Now Is The Time

Now is the time to begin implementing these 5 habits. Don’t be hard on yourself for things that haven’t been done, or begin feeling like it’s too late. It isn’t. Begin taking action. Action precedes success. These 5 tips will help you get to where you want to be with your preparedness goals.

You’ve Got This!!