Good savings at Food Lion

Groceries are one of the hardest things to save money on. However, with a little planning and by matching up coupons with store promotions, I managed to score a decent savings at Food Lion yesterday. Here's a picture of my purchase.

Total Retail w/ sale prices: $63.53 + tax = $67.55
My OOP: $30.60 + tax = $34.62
Savings: $32.93, 49%

This week I decided to do Food Lion's “Big Deal” promotion. You save $5 for every participating 10 items you buy. I wanted to try for the maximum reward--$15 for 30 participating items. "The Big Deal" promotion is running through October 25th. You can get a list of participating items by clicking here.

The total before my MVP card was scanned was $81.24 + tax. If you include that, I saved $50.64. Here's what I bought.

2 bags Cheetos @ $2.50 = $5.00
-$1.00 “Big Deal”
-$1.00/2 mfr coupon
Cost: $3.00 (making these $1.50 each)

2 bags Fritos @ $2.50 = $5.00
-$1.00 “Big Deal”
-$1.00/2 mfr coupon
Cost: $3.00 (making these $1.50 each)

3 boxes Pillsbury frozen breakfast sandwiches 2-pk @ $2.00 = $6.00
-$1.50 “Big Deal”
-(2) $1.10 mfr coupons
-$1.00 mfr coupon
Cost: $1.30 (making these $0.43 each)

1 bag Pillsbury Eggs Scrambles $2.00
-$0.50 “Big Deal”
-$1.00 mfr coupon
Cost: $0.50

2 boxes Pillsbury toaster strudel @ $2.00 = $4.00
-$1.00 “Big Deal”
-$0.50/2 mfr coupon
Cost: $2.50 (making these $1.25 each)

3 boxes Green Giant frozen vegetables $5.00
-$1.50 “Big Deal”
-$0.60/3 mfr coupon
Cost: $2.90 (making these $0.97 each)

2 Pepsi Max 2-liters @ $1.50 = $3.00
-$1.00 “Big Deal”
-$3.18 from using 2 FREE Pepsi Max wyb 2 Cheetos/Fritos (cashier took off $1.59 as original price)
Cost: -$1.18 (making these FREE + $1.18 profit)

1 Brawny paper towel $1.00
-$0.50 “Big Deal”
-$0.50 mfr coupon
Cost: FREE

2 Pillsbury brownie mixes @ $0.99 = $1.98
-$1.00 “Big Deal”
-(2) $0.50 mfr coupons
Cost: -$0.02 (making these FREE + $0.02 profit)

2 Del Monte fruit cups 4-pks @ $2.00 = $4.00
-$1.00 “Big Deal”
Cost: $3.00 (making these $1.50 each)

1 box Quaker instant oatmeal $2.89
-$0.50 “Big Deal”
-$1.00 mfr coupon
Cost: $1.39

1 Hormel Compleats microwave dinner $2.00
-$0.50 “Big Deal”
-$0.75 mfr coupon
Cost: $0.75

4 packages Pillsbury cookies @ $2.50 = $10.00
-$2.00 “Big Deal”
-(2) $1.10/2 mfr coupons
Cost: $5.80 (making these $1.45 each)

2 cans Pillsbury cinnamon rolls @ $2.29 = $4.58
-$1.00 “Big Deal”
-$1.00/2 mfr coupon
Cost: $2.58 (making these $1.29 each)

2 cans Pillsbury crescent rolls @ $2.29 = $4.58
-$1.00 “Big Deal”
(I had a -$0.40 coupon but the cashier didn’t scan it. Boo!)
Cost: $3.58 (making these $1.79 each)

2 cans Pillsbury Grand’s biscuits @ $1.25 = $2.50 (not a “Big Deal” item)
-$1.00/2 mfr coupon
Cost: $1.50 (making these $0.75 each)

I picked products with distant expiration dates. We're going to save some of these items for family dinners. Maybe the crescent rolls, biscuits, and cookies will make it until Thanksgiving! I'll share the Cheetos and Fritos with my parents. Those are way too dangerous to have around the house!

I went earlier in the week to buy some staples, like milk, eggs, bread, cheese, and meat. That made my total grocery bill about $55. My goal is to keep our grocery bill under $100 this month. We can do it!