Save Money by Weighing Produce

Here's an obvious though likely overlooked way of instantly saving money on produce: weigh it! I'm not talking about produce that's sold by the pound, but rather produce that is packaged in a pre-weighted amount. I recently discovered this as I was trying to decide whether to buy apples at $0.99/lb or just buy the 3 lb bag for $2.99. I decided to put the bag on the scale and found that it was over 3.5 lbs! Guess which I chose? The girls over at Krazy Coupon Lady also have blogged about this in more detail. Here's their post:

Extreme Couponing Tip:  Save on produce at the scale!

Here’s a great way to get more produce for less money, without even using a coupon!  Hit the scales!  Now, for those of you who, like me, have severe “scale-o-phobia”, don’t worry.  Here’s one scale that won’t affect your self confidence or make you run for the comfort of Ben & Jerry. Weighing produce is an anxiety free, savvy shopping practice!  I’ve often found that by taking less than a minute to weigh my produce, I can fulfill my bargain hunting obsession and save about 10% on many of the following produce items.  There are two important groups of produce that should be weighed before purchasing:

(1) Individually priced produce:  lettuce, avocado, berries, grapefruit, kiwi, lemon, peppers, pineapple.
When you’re purchasing produce that is priced per item, instead of per pound, it’s always best to weigh each item.  Did you ever think to take your 1 lb strawberries over to the scale?  You may find a variance of a quarter of a pound!  Better to be the one on the receiving or “heavy” end of the scale!  In addition to smelling your pineapples to make sure they’re sweet, place the few top contenders on the scale to see what they weigh!  Got it now?  Last example, then I’ll move on.  Heads of lettuce are usually priced per head.  I always squeeze my iceberg lettuce to find the more densely packed heads, but I’ve found when I combine that strategy with the scale, I have even better luck finding the jumbo heads.  Lettuce is one item on which I’ve found the most variance with weight!

(2) Bagged Produce:  5 lb bag potatoes, 3 lb bag carrots, 5 lb bag apples, bagged oranges.
When you’re purchasing a 3 lb bag of carrots, the processor who originally placed the carrots in the bag is supposed to fill the bag with at least 3 lbs of carrots.  The weight on the bag should be the minimum, though you’ll find, once you visit the scale; that’s not always the case.  Each bag of carrots has a slightly different weight.  On my last trip to the store, I found a bag that rang it at about 3.3 pounds, so I got 10% more product for free just for taking literally 60 seconds at the scale.  Plus, my kids think it’s great fun.  Potatoes are especially important to weigh.  Since potatoes are 80% water, their weight can decrease over time.  I’ve found the widest variance on bagged potatoes than on any other bagged produce.