Sorry for the delay in continuing my posts (assuming anyone is still checking...)
Because kosher food tends to cost more, and food is such a big part of one's budget, it seems that this is the first logical place to re-examine costs. Again, this is following the idea presented by SephardiLady of looking for ways to save money wherever possible.
1. Expand your range of "acceptable" hechshers. Do your own research as to why there is or isn't an issue with hechshers you aren't familiar with. Don't just rely on your next door neighbor telling you "we don't eat that." There is a major hechsher in our area that is found on supermarket bread. If you don't use this hechsher, you are going to pay more for bread. And large numbers of people do not use it. We did our research through a respected rav and found out that the reasons are political, not halachic. The more hechshers you eat, the more you can utilize coupons and sales. We rely on Rabbi Eliezer Eidlitz of KosherQuest (who was one of my husband's rebbeim in high school, and according to my husband is "one of the frummest people I know.")
2. Not keeping chalav yisrael. It is more expensive, prevents you from using coupons/supermarket sales to buy the cheapest products, and is often wasted. See this week's Orthonomics post on the topic and the comments there. (One tells of a family who was spending $30 a week extra on chalav yisrael, while they were struggling to pay their necessary expenses.)
3. DH (Barak of Am Kshe Oref fame...) has posted previously about the question of whether we can change the standard of eating glatt kosher, which is a chumra, but at the moment there is no convenient kosher alternative. In the meantime, he also made phone calls and found a wholesaler from whom to get meat at more affordable prices. We got a group together to place the required size for the order. This is something one can arrange in most communities without too much effort and WITH very significant savings.
4. Compare prices between your local kosher store and other grocery sources - and buy the lowest prices. Don't buy from your local kosher shop because you feel you have to spend your parnassa giving the other person their parnassa. They are running a business - they need to compete with other businesses as far as selection, service, and pricing in order to attract customers. Also, if you happen to have a local kosher store that consistently provides food that spoils immediately and ends up in the garbage, don't keep spending your money on that food.
There is a lot of peer pressure to take on chumras for food - in other words, to limit ones choices of brands, and therefore not be able to buy things with coupons or on sale, and not be able to bargain shop. There is also pressure to buy from kosher merchants, even ones who don't feel the same need to provide quality products and polite service to those who are supporting their businesses. But peer pressure is not a reason to go into debt.
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3 comments:
The only problem with doing your own research on the hashgachas, is that if you use something that your community does not hold by, people won't eat at your house.
I think it depends what people. Many of the "people who won't eat here if I don't keep (choose chumra)" already don't eat at other people's houses, or already have another reason why they won't eat at yours. If you are talking about specific close relatives or friends, then that's a real concern.
Cool Yiddishe Mama was once asked questions about what chumras she keeps by a total stranger. The reason given was "to see if I can eat in your house." Who invited her? And she certainly did not come over once the "approval" had been given.
But obviously the larger issue, which your comment suggests, is the responsibility of the community leaders on this one. They are putting people in the position of feeling required to keep these expensive chumras, and truly religious people who believe in not going against their rabbis have no alternative.
I'm still here. Great post.
I think the biggest key to cutting food costs is effective homemaking. If you can't imagine eating a meal with either meat/chicken or cheese in it and you keep kosher, you are going to spend a lot of money, even if you manage to buy in bulk when these kosher products do go on some sort of sale. Expanding the menu in a kosher home is essential.
Great post. I will have to link.
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