You have all seen glimpses of my food and diaper stockpile. I have always thought that the best way to stockpile was when you find the items on sale or clearance. Also, that it is best to stockpile enough to get you to the next sale (obviously, I haven’t applied this to my diaper stockpile).
However rising food prices are putting these theories to the test. According to this article* in the Wall Street Journal, “food inflation for the average American household is now running at 4.5% a year. Some prices are rising even more quickly: cereal prices by more than 8% a year. Both flour and rice are up more than 13%. Milk, cheese, bananas and even peanut butter: They’re all up by more than 10%. Eggs have rocketed up 30% in a year. Ground beef prices are up 4.8% and chicken by 5.4%.” With the possibility of some of these price trends to continue to increase.
Just a month ago I mused about how money market funds were yielding around 2.95% and a year long CD was yielding 3.5%. Is it making more sense these days to “invest” some of your short term savings in building a stockpile of food rather than in a money market fund or savings account? if you go by the numbers I think the answer is clear. However, there are many things to consider, availability of space and funds being two of them.
Whatever your situation may be, I think this is an idea worth considering. Even if you don’t have a lot of money to spare, dedicating a few extra dollars from your budget every month to build a small stockpile may be a good idea. To maximize your money make sure you stockpile items that are on sale, hopefully a loss leader, or items that you have found for nearly free if you use coupons.
* You may need to have a subscription to the WSJ to read this article. Sometimes some articles are accessible to everyone. Don’t be afraid to check it out.