We ran out of milk this evening, so I made an emergency trip to the grocery store to buy more. Generally we purchase a half gallon of one-percent, which lasts us about a week.
When I went to grab the milk from the refrigerator case, however, I was startled by the price: $3.19! Usually we pay between $1.99 and $2.29.
Our of curiosity, I priced the full gallons. They were on sale for $2.99. That’s right: The sale price on a gallon of milk made the unit price less than 50% of the unit price for a half gallon. (That is, an ounce of milk from the gallon would cost me 2.34 cents, whereas an ounce from the half gallon would cost me 4.98 cents.)
I bought the gallon, naturally. We probably won’t drink it all, but by golly, I just saved twenty cents!
GRS is committed to helping our readers save and achieve your financial goals.Savings interest rates may be low, but that’s all the more reason to shop for the best rate.Find the highest savings interest rate from Ally Bank, Capital One 360, Everbank, and more.
This article is about Food, Frugality, Funny Money, Real-Life
Disclaimer: This content is not provided or commissioned by American Express. Opinions expressed here are author's alone, not those of American Express, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by American Express. This site may be compensated through American Express Affiliate Program.
Discover is a paid advertiser of this site. Reasonable efforts are made to maintain accurate information. See the Discover online credit card application for full terms and conditions on offers and rewards.
SEARCH FOR RECENT ARTICLES
Yes, folks, by all means, buy more than you need and will use before it goes to waste, just because it’s cheaper.
No wonder people hate Americans.
FYI Jazmin: You can’t make fresh cheese with 1% milk, it’s basically already whey.
loading....
Jessie – I don’t understand how J.D.’s milk experience can be seen as an example of the wastefulness of Americans and how the rest of the world rightfully loathes them. Wanting to get a deal and price comparison is a universal pursuit, not just an American one. Frankly it would be stupid to buy a smaller amount for MORE than a larger one. That’s just common sense to buy the gallon rather than the half. And I think many commenters have given him ample suggestions for how to not let it go to waste. If anything, it reveals how resourceful and frugal the readers are.
loading....
Wow. Milk is super expensive here. Generic brands that are ‘hormone free’ are $3.79/gallon and the premium brands are $4.50+. We go through 3-4gallons/week.
loading....
Once I started thinking about what milk actually is, I got grossed out and stopped drinking it. I’m a fan of almond milk, but soy will do as well.
And the price of food/milk is not because of our ‘recession’ – food prices have been going up for about 6months-1year now (globally).
loading....
Raw milk is not organic.
Only pasteurized milk (organic is often “ultra-pasteurized”) is safe to consume.
We have periodic listeriosis outbreaks here among the Hispanic population from products made from unpasteurized milk.
loading....
I cannot believe I just read 55 comments on milk! And I don’t even drink the stuff! Ever! I can’t think of the last time I bought milk. But the comments here have been really interesting…
$8 for organic milk at Whole Foods? Dude, you’re getting ripped off. Organic milk at the Safeway here in Seattle is $4.29. And I know this because I checked after reading this post the first time
I don’t drink milk, like I said…
And OH GOSH FLAME WARS can get so silly, can’t they? JD – please – keep writing what you’re writing. I blog on personal finance and productivity and goal-setting and small business. Because I think they all completely interrelate and I can speak as an authority on all points. I have had readers complain, but so what? It’s what I want to write about, and since the blog is still growing, I must be doing something right.
JD, I’m sure you know when to shrug off meanies, but I thought I’d still make a point of offering you a smile and telling you that I got the satire off the bat. I love your writing and don’t think you should change a thing.
loading....
Thanks for the tip on sour milk being used in pancakes and the like – never thought of it before.
Jessie, obviously there are people in the world that hate Americans (I think probably every country in the world is hated by someone) although from what I understand, it doesn’t have anything to do with milk. I have lived overseas for about 20 years and can tell you that in my experience in Europe, no matter what is going on, no matter who has been President, Europeans love Americans. They may not love American policies all the time but they love Americans .
loading....
The making of bread beocomes painfully easy with powedered milk and that old hobart or kitchen aid mixer. While it does not seem less expensive it stores forever and I no longer throw 3/4 of a gallon away. I havent yet told them, I must still somehow answer to the question, “There is no milk in the fridge, where’d you get it?”
loading....
Bear in mind too that too much milk can cause some temporary health issues. Something to do with the Lactose.
loading....
A great way to stretch milk is to mix 1/2 gallon of “real” milk with 1/2 gallon of powdered. You won’t be able to tell the difference and you stretch it twice as far.
loading....
Some commenters have noted the relationship between milk and gas prices; this is absolutely a true relationship, and it exists for several reasons. First, dairy farms have to expend fuel in growing crops for their cows to eat, or they have to spend money to truck in grain for the cows. This has been exacerbated recently by the competition for corn from the ethanol industry. Second, milk is shipped via truck from the farm to the processing plant, and finally, once it is in cartons/jugs/bottles, it is shipped from the processing plant to stores. Until we find a way to get milk from the cows to the plant to the store without using fuel, milk prices will be tied to fuel prices.
loading....
With a household of 11, we go through a lot of milk. To avoid spending gas on the emergency trip to the store, we’ve been freezing milk for years.
I don’t notice a difference in taste at all.
One difference I *do* notice is that milk that has been frozen is no longer homogenized. This means the cream floats to the top. Either shake it briefly before each use to mix in the cream, or pour right from the top to add real dairy cream to your coffee. Choice is a good thing!
loading....
>>”And don’t forget that you probably spent at least 50 cents on gas even if the grocery store was only 2 miles away.”
Yes, but the frugal mindset pays off.
loading....
I hate to preach here but all the food we eat is really inexpensive, if you take a moment to think about the effort it takes to make it. We bought a hobby farm about 5 years ago and raise milk goats, sheep and chickens. I have people that love our cheese and would pay $20/lb for it but I can’t even break even doing it (not even including labor). The chickens are about the easiest. Least labor, the eggs are fresh, not like at the grocery store, and yes eggs will last for months although around here they never stick around that long. There is also no comparison of fresh milk to anything from the store. Finally some food for thought. Would you ever eat pizza if you had to make it from scratch? That is mill the flour, make the sauce, the sausage or pepperoni, make the cheese, grow the onions, peppers olives? We live in the greatest society on the planet.
loading....