September is National Preparedness Month. The Department of Homeland Security is sponsoring the month long event and recommends each citizen follow these four steps:
 
Get a Kit
Make a Plan
Be informed
Get Involved
 
For additional information on each step, visit http://www.ready.gov/america/npm08/intro.html
 
Not only is this month long campaign a national focus, local grocery stores in Utah are also encouraging preparedness through some amazing case lot sales going on right now. This month is the time to stock up on basic long term food storage. Harmons and Smiths are currently having a 2 week case lot sale and Macey’s case lot sale will begin in a few weeks.
 
My overall recommendation on purchasing at case lot sales is to first be very careful that the case lot prices are stock up prices. A stock up price is the best possible price for an item. This price does vary depending on many factors, and, unfortunately, many of my stock up prices have changed over the last year as the price of groceries has shot up.
 
I also really try to have a case lot mentality throughout the year….meaning, whenever I find an item that is a super hot deal I buy a large quantity of the item. This is a HUGE help to the budget. We have all seen the super shoppers at the case lot sales….they have 2-3 carts of food piled high with cases of beans, corn, tomato sauce etc. The bill is often over $500. I personally would rather spread that $500 out over several months rather than take the hit all at once.
 
I do love case lot sales, and I will buy several cases of canned goods; however, I make sure that the item is something that is a fantastic price.
 
Now, if you love case lot sales and have time constraints that prevent you from shopping the deals on a regular basis (and would rather shop the case lot sales for convenience), I do have some suggestions that will help ease the financial strain of the substantial grocery trip you will probably take this month.
 
Foremost, you need to think of your grocery budget as a “floating” budget. You set aside money each month for groceries. Some months you will not spend all of the money. Instead of absorbing that money back into the budget and spending it on something else, leave it in the grocery budget and add the same amount the next month as your normally would. If you are disciplined, you can slowly build up a grocery “slush fund.” This extra money is perfect for those BIG grocery bills that are usually budget busters. Again, you need to be disciplined. If you do get to the point where you want to spread out the big purchases throughout the year and deal shop on a weekly basis, you will a significant dip in your grocery budget each month. This is the fastest way to build up a grocery slush fund, but it does take more time.
 
I create several grocery lists on www.pinchingyourpennies.com each week that should help with the time issue. I find the deals for you, combine them with any available coupons and send that list to your email box each week. I strongly recommend joining the email list at http://www.pinchingyourpennies.com/newslettersignup.htm
 
Follow these links for the Harmons and Smiths Case Lot sale information. I have rated the prices of each item and recommend purchasing in quantity only the 4 and 5 starred items.
 
Smiths:
 
http://pinchingyourpennies.com/coupons/store_sales.php?id=UT_Smiths_Sep03_Sep09
 
Harmons:
 
http://pinchingyourpennies.com/coupons/store_sales.php?id=UT_Harmons_Sep01_Sep07