15 Tips to Save Money on Organic Food (2024)

This practical list of tips will help you save money on organic food to reduce your exposure to pesticides, protect pollinators, and avoid GMOs. Switching to organic food doesn’t have to break your bank, if you follow these simple tips.

15 Ways to Save Money on Organic Food

Despite what the naysayers say about certifiedorganic food being being an unnecessary rip-off, there are many valid reasons to switch to organic food. If you’d like to lessen your impact on the earth, reduce dependence on fossil fuels, ingest fewer toxic chemicals and more nutrient-rich foods, and help save the bees, the monarch butterflies, and other pollinators, you might consider switching to organic foods.

Youmight think going organic is too expensive and not practical for you, yet there are many things you can do to help keep the cost of organic food down. Today I’m sharing 15 cost saving tips with you to help you add more organic foods to your diet.

Know Where to Buy Organic Food

The first thing to do if you want to keep the cost of organic food as low as possible, is know where to shop. More and more stores are selling organic foods these days – did you know even ALDI has an organic line? It’s true. I buy a lot of organics at ALDI and I’m very happy with them. See if your favorite store carries an organic line and compare costs – sometimes organics cost about the same as their conventionally grown counterparts.

Buy in Bulk

There are two ways to buy in bulk and both ways can add up to significant savings on organic food.

The first way is to shop for beans, spices, nuts, and flour from bulk bins in many grocery stores. Bulk bins often offer significant savings over smaller packages (and produce less waste too).

The second way to buy in bulk is to buy in large quantities. I buy lots of dried goods like wheat berries, rice, dried beans in large quantities (25-50 lb bags) for a reduction in price.

Check the per unit price, though, because bulk isn’t always cheaper.

Buy Online

Don’t forget that you can buy online! Amazon, Thrive Market, direct from companies, and organic co-ops like Azure Standard are great places to find organic foods for less money.

Shop around, make a price-point list, and order organic food from the comfort of your own home. Having it show up directly to your door is a pretty amazing way to grocery shop too.

Buy Directly from Farmers or CSAs

Another way to save money on organic food is to buy it directly from farmers or from a CSA. I’ve never participated in a CSA myself, but I buy a lot of organic items directly from farmers in my area. It’s a great way to support your local economy, reduce fossil fuel use (less transportation), and really get to know what you’re buying and feeding your family.

Proper Storage Techniques for Organic Food

Literal tons of food get wasted every day. Organic food follows similar storage as nonorganic but some of the produce is less stable. Wasting less is another way to save money on organic food.

Minimize Produce Waste

Storing organic produce correctly helps retain nutrients, flavor, and quality. Ultimately this saves you money by reducing food waste. Bananas, tomatoes, and avocados can be stored on the counter at room temperature.

Store berries, leafy greens, apples, green peppers, carrots and celery in the fridge. Peppers, carrots, and celery should be stored in a bag with holes for humidity control.

Fresh herbs can be stored like flowers in a glass jar with water and covered with a plastic bag.

Learning how to properly store your organic produce means no more slimy, leaky, bags in your crisper drawer.

Make Shelf-Stable Foods Last Longer

Just like there are tips for making produce last longer, there are also tips for making shelf-stable food last longer too.

For instance, store your spices away from the heat of your stove. Make sure your dried goods are in air-tight containers to prevent spoilage and bug infestation. Store oils in cool, dark areas away from heat and light.

Practice “First In – First Out” by putting new items behind the older ones. This ensures you use the older items first.

Waste Not, Want Not

My dad’s mantra when I was growing up was Waste Not Want Not. To make your organic grocery dollars last longer, make sure you eat up those leftovers. I know a lot of people don’t like leftovers, but for the life of me, I can’t figure out why. Leftovers are amazing!

As often as I can, I try to have leftovers to reduce the amount of time I have to spend in the kitchen. If you don’t like leftovers, maybe you can think of creative ways to turn them into a new meal. Whatever you do, don’t let those leftovers go to waste if you want to save money on organic food.

How to Prioritize your Organic Dollars

Another way to save money on organic food is to prioritize where you will get the most value. You don’t have to buy organic everything, but put your money towards organic food where it makes the most difference.

Buy in-season

Have you ever noticed that in-season produce is cheaper than out-of-season produce? Yesterday I was in the grocery store and a little old lady was griping about the strawberries. “They’re just so expensive,” she said. “And they look terrible.” She was really muttering to herself, but I couldn’t help myself and replied, “Yes, it’s just not quite strawberry season yet, is it?” There’s a reason in-season produce fruits and veg are cheaper – they are in big supply and don’t have to be trucked in from another hemisphere.

Eating organic strawberries is great in the spring and early summer, but in the winter, citrus is where it’s at. Oranges, grapefruit, tangerines. In the summertime, focus on melons, other berries, cherries, and peaches.

Freeze & Can

Another way to stretch your organic dollars is to freeze and/or can organic produce when it is in season. Buy in bulk and then add to your freezer! I love having frozen blueberries in my freezer in the winter. I’ve also frozen pomegranate seeds and smashed avocado in the winter when these produce items are in season and cheap. Then I can pull out the frozen foods and enjoy them even when the price and quality at the grocery store isoutrageous.

Dirty 12 / Clean 15

As much as I would like to buy everything I can organic, the cost is sometimes prohibitive. That’s when I turn to the Dirty 12 / Clean 15 list. There are certain produce items I always buy organic: apples, grapes, and berries, because they have the highest levels of pesticides and are very high on the Dirty 12 list. But avocados, pineapples, and kiwi are on the Clean 15 list and have a lower level of pesticides, so I don’t feel as bad if I have to buy conventional versions of fruits and produce on the Clean 15.

Use Coupons

I love the memes I see that claim you can’t use coupons if you eat real food, because it’s just not true. I’ve found coupons on lots of organic food that I’m happy to use. Every dollar saved is a huge win in my book!

Get Organized to Save Money on Organic Food

It sounds boring and tedious, but keeping lists, documenting prices, and menu planning will also save you money on organic food.

Make a Price-Point list

A great way to save money on organic food is to make a price-point list. Prices fluctuate a lot at the grocery store so if you keep track of what you pay, it’s easy to stock up on essentials you know you will eat when they cost their lowest.

Makea Weekly Menu Plan

It’s true that having a menu plan is a great way to keep you on track. Knowing what you’re going to eat makes sure that you actually eat the food you buy and helps you stay out of unhealthy restaurants.

I’ve tried many types ofmenu planning from weekly, to bi-weekly, to a monthly plan to find what works best for me. It’s simple to write down meals you’d like to serve in your planner or on your calendar and is very helpful. If you don’t currently menu plan, give it a try!

Keep a Stocked Pantry

Let’s face it – a lot of money goes towards impulse buys when we are in the store and hungry. A stocked pantry is such a huge help when you’re trying to save money on groceries. Practice shopping your pantry first and making your menu plans from what you already have.

Keep your pantry stocked by stocking up when dry goods are on sale. Always having a few items on hand for easy organic meals when you don’t feel like cooking or simply don’t have the ingredients is a great way to stay out of stores and restaurants.

Grow Your Own Organic Food

One of my favorite ways to save money on organics is to grow it myself. This way I know exactly where my food has been and what it has been exposed to.

Grow your owngarden

Growing your own garden is such a great idea because it saves money on groceries and it’s a great way to connect with the earth. I have a big garden every year and love eating the produce I grow in it.

I also involve my kids and think it helps them to love fresh fruits and veggies too. If you don’t have a spot for a garden, maybe you have room for a couple containers. It’s not hard to grow tomatoes or zucchini on your porch or balcony! You might be surprised what all you can grow in a container garden.

Grow Your Own Kitchen Herbs

If you enjoy cooking with fresh herbs, a great way to save money is to grow them yourself. A little packet of fresh herbs is easily $3 at the store. You can buy yourself a whole basil plant for that price.

A sunny kitchen window is a great place to keep a few herb plants and looks as pretty as it is functional.

Save Your Seeds

Once you have an organic garden growing, try to save your own seeds. This ensures your whole gardening cycle will be organic.

These tips help me feed my family of six an organic menu for less. We don’t eat 100% organic, but knowing how to prioritize my organic dollars and make the organics I do buy last as long as possible is very important to me. What are your favorite money-saving tips for organics?

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