[angnstang]

okay everyone here is the question that I have...

I want to start my stockpile for food only. I have enough soap and things like that. I have a feeling I have been doing it wrong to take full advantage of the stockpiling when it comes to food.

So with our taxes I have decided to start fresh and get my stockpile started in one big trip. I want to save as much as possible but to get started money is not an issue.

I wanted to get your suggestions about what direction I need to go in, what to buy what not to buy. My goal is to get the stock pile up and then start maintaining in the month of Feb.

THanks in advance for your suggestions and looking forward to see everyones ideas.

[orangegrove7]

Personally, I only stockpile for things that I know I will use:

chicken broth
pasta
tomato sauce
canned beans
tomato juice
frozen corn
frozen peas
chicken nuggets

[batmansblonde]

This is how I feel about stockpiling at full price.... you can ALWAYS get full price items at full price so don't stockpile full price items because you will be using up room in your house to store items that the store can store for you for free until they are drastically reduced or free. Save your money UNTIL items that you use are on sale so that you can use your space for things you've gotten free or VERY cheaply.

I would take the extra money every week and stock up on the things that are at least 50% off or the cheapest you've ever seen them. Almost everything in the pictures in my stockpile link were free. If they weren't free, they were 90% off and those are the only things that I stockpile

[dmyersquin]

It's funny, every year around the end of the year I get this urge to organize. The things I am working on now are getting more shelves for storage. My husband converted a small unfinished closet space into a usable closet pantry for me this week. Once we get shelves in there I will have more stockpile room. I also would like to get a bigger, upright freezer this year sometime. I have a small square chest freezer out in the garage and I am outgrowing it.
One thing I recommend is going through all your recipes and making a list of all the ingredients you would need. If you need ideas for recipes, you can go online or look at the library. I liked Desperation Dinners. Also I like to have a bunch of recipes for my crockpot. It's important to know how to cook the food you buy. If you buy all the staples but don't know how to cook, it does no good. So, once you get a master pantry list, and some good recipes, start looking at the flyers coming up for the local stores where you shop. If anything is on sale, that you also have a coupon for, that is something you would use, buy as many as you have coupons for. Then, buy only 1 or 2 of the items that you need for the pantry that aren't on sale. I also recommend looking in the closeout and clearance bins. And clean out all your shelves and cupboards and freezer and see what you have, what needs to be eaten. You can make a meal plan for the next couple weeks based on what you have, and then start stocking up. You can pm me if you want any more tips.

[marbear]

Please do not take your tax refund and spend $$$$ on a stockpile!!! What you do is you only buy stuff that is almost free or at the very least over 50 percent off. Stockpiling should not cost you a small fortune. You may not have a beautiful pantry that looks like a grocery store shelf. Sometimes I have rows of the same thing, sometimes I only have 1 of something I got free or really cheap. Still, it gives me more meal options.

Don't forget to check the produce bin and meat bins. YOu can cut/portion/process those things and freeze them if they are manager special or closeout.

[Carina]

How I stockpile:

I look through all the sale papers and write down all the "deals" gather my coupons and buy as much as the limit allows.

I always look for the loss leaders because they are worth the trip and stockpile those items. For example, Walmart had cream of mushroom soup for .60 a can so I went with all my coupons and got as many as I could because they won't go bad til 2010.

Try to stockpile things you use all the time because you know you will always run through them ( I know duh but some people don't do this)

Always be on the look out for good deals which you can add to your stockpile. That is how I build my stockpile up throughout the year.

[apsufan82]

I would agree with the rest of you about not stockpiling at full price! I only stockpile what I can get real cheap. I'm talking cents here! No dollars! I also only stockpile what I will use because I don't have much space I have lot of items that have a long experation date like pasta, cake mixes, sauce, canned foods, peanuts, boxed foods, etc...

[bargainshopper]

I am in the same boat as the OP.. I have the hardest time stockpiling food for cheap. Although I refuse to spend more than $50 a week on groceries. I make sure that what ever I get will make it last.

Now my problem is eating out so much. that is a New Year's Resolution that I am making and hope to stick to it!


good luck on your stockpile and I also agree with the others don't spend alot to get it going. Give it some time and you will have more then you know what to do with!

[angel nee nee]

I think the point of stockpiling for sake of saving money is to save money, not to have them in hand when we need it. (although having those things handy is very benefitial and nice.)

If you want to save money, often time you have to buy them when they offer them to you for cheap or free, not when you need them.

If you want to stock pile for sake of having them on hand,
Flylady has a pantry list here. Think about what from this list your family needs, and make your pantry list. Check off the things you have, buy things your family needs.

FlyLady.net: Control Journal


If you wa nt to stock pil for sake of saving money, wait to see what's on sale right now and get what's on sale. (but only things you would use.)
To me, I won't go hunting for stockpile items, but stockpile items kinda comes to you.

I know that my husbnad will only want to go to Publix.
And I know what will come on sale from time to time from Publix that this family uses all the time. Certain cereals, coffee creamer, olive oil, etc. So I get them when they are onsale, and I get as many as I think this family will use until the next sale on same items comes around.

For item like fresh veggies and deli products, you can stock pile them when they are on sale and freeze them.