Eco-Justice Team - July/August 2025

As this is written, the heat index and local utility bills are rising, as well as gasoline prices. We all know that buying less and buying wisely help save what’s left of our natural world, but economic chaos gives us yet another reason to do so. Recently the New York Times asked readers to share tips for saving money on groceries, and published the following ideas:

1. Cook a pantry meal before you go shopping. Check your pantry, fridge, and freezer to ensure that nothing goes to waste. Pastas, stir fries, soups and salads are great ways to use up bits of leftovers.

2. Avoid the center of the grocery store as much as possible. Shop with a list and stick to it. Some readers feel this keeps them from making impulse purchases of packaged foods.

3. Plan multiple meals around one ingredient. Black beans can be tucked into a burrito, served over rice, or top a cheesy baked potato. Sausages can be baked into a breakfast casserole, sauteed or grilled with peppers and onions, or added to a quick pasta with your favorite vegetable(s).

4. Buy on-sale items and freeze in servings. Large packages of chicken, ground beef, pork or turkey can be portioned into meal-sized packages and frozen. Just remember to thaw them in time! (It is a truism that saving money takes a little thought.)

5. Shop more often. This seems counter-intuitive, but if you live near enough to a market to buy produce frequently, you can get the freshest and most tasty items and plan that day’s menu around them. One reader says she pretends to be Emily in Paris.

6. Respect the rotisserie chicken. Cutting up the meat can provide a hearty addition to salads, soups, pastas and stews. Save the bones, of course, to make stock.

7. Make it; don’t buy it. Yogurt, granola, biscuit mix, pancake mix, and, yes, bread can all be made at home without much trouble. Many readers praised the Instant Pot for the ability to cook dried beans without long soaking. You can also use a slow cooker, but you will have to start early.

8. Cheaper doesn’t mean less flavor. Try chicken thighs or drumsticks, chuck roast, pork shoulder or flank. You may find you enjoy the heartier flavor.

9. Eat less meat. This is a no-brainer, of course. You can find seemingly endless recipes for chickpeas, lentils, beans, etc.

10. Buy staples in bulk. Another no-brainer. Just remember to use it (see #1).

11. Grow what you have space to. Many readers wrote about the cost-saving and therapeutic value of having a garden. Flavorful herbs can be grown in very little space, even in an apartment.

12. Lean on community resources. Anyone can fall on hard times, and food banks and pantries do not judge.

Have a great summer and try not to overuse your air conditioning!