One thing that I have often noticed when it comes to buying general groceries is that fruits and vegetables in larger supermarkets are often cheaper if you are buying it in a pre-packaged manner. On the other hand, if you are selecting it fresh and paying by the pound I have often found it is cheaper from smaller businesses.
As an example, recently I was looking at buying a bunch of carrots and went to a supermarket here called Superstore. They have a 5LB pre-packaged and selected bag of carrots for $1.98 each. In contract, most smaller stores would sell the same brand at about $1+ every 2LB. I looked at two smaller stores here in BC with one called Donald’s market and the other called Sunrise market.
But noticeably, if you opt to buy your own freshly selected fruits and vegetables by the pound as mentioned, it is remarkably cheaper at the smaller stores. For example, at Superstore I was looking at the apples and its prices for a specific brand was over $1 per pound. At the smaller stores they started at about 65 cents a pound.
This was a pretty consistent theme too. So that is one way to save money on your food bills if you are looking to save some money or possibly getting more for your dollar.