Daily Cheapskate: How to eat organic produce, keep a gluten-free diet and eat natural foods, and still save money

5/01/2012

How to eat organic produce, keep a gluten-free diet and eat natural foods, and still save money

My husband and I aren't concerned about eating organic or natural foods, and we do love our glutens. There. I said it. It's out there. Full disclosure. Somebody please make me a pesticide milkshake please.

And yet, for the last two years, we've eaten organic produce almost exclusively, lots of natural foods, and really dig those Udi's gluten-free banana muffins. Those are some mighty good muffins.

Why do we do it? Because organic food, natural food and gluten-free food companies, knowing that their products are pricier than conventional food items, distribute many more coupons than other companies do. And so, between the coupons and following the sales, these specialty items turn out to be significantly cheaper than conventional food items. The trick is to know where, when and how to shop, and to load up on the items you need when you can buy them more cheaply.

For starters, here are some go-to sites for me to snag organic, natural and gluten-free coupons:

Whole Foods: their store coupons can be stacked with manufacturer's coupons (this depends on the store...check with your local Whole Foods to verify, YMMV) for double savings. Whole Foods publishes new coupons every other month, with the previous cycle's coupons expiring on the off-month.
Sprouts: their store coupons can be stacked with manufacturer's coupons.
Mambo Sprouts: their manufacturer's coupons feature almost exclusively organic and natural items.
Common Kindness: the new coupon kid on the block. Sign up and your favorite charity gets a small donation each time you print a coupon. They have coupons for all types of items including some rare organic and natural food items.
Recyclebank: sign up for this program, accumulate points very quickly and redeem them for rare, high-value organic coupons, like a $2 coupon for any Kashi product, and others.

Here's a great source for reasonably priced gluten-free kosher food:

AllergyFreeKosher: this site features organic, natural and especially gluten-free items that are all strictly kosher. Team up with a friend and order in bulk to get rid of shipping charges and take advantage of multiple-item-discounts. Many of the gluten-free items listed here are substantially cheaper than they would cost in the stores. Enter promo code DAILYCHEAPSKATE (good through 7/31/12) for an additional 5% off.

Below are some of my favorite organic/natural/gluten-free vendors that feature coupons for their high-priced items on a regular basis. Check their websites, "like" their Facebook pages, etc.