9 Ways to Save $ on Safer Products

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Janelle Sorensen

Sunday, July 18, 2010

Many people think you have to spend more money to get safer or eco-friendly products and in some cases that’s true. But there are also ways you can get safer products at a comparable or even more affordable price than conventional goods. Here’s how:

1. Buy house brand organics (Target organics, Safeway organics, etc). I know all of you co-op die-hards cringe at this advice, but for a family on a budget, house brand organics are a boon. Sure, they’re big business organics, but the USDA organic seal means the same thing no matter whom the manufacturer is.

2. Visit the farmer’s market just before it closes. Farmer’s don’t relish the idea of hauling goods back to the farm, so they’ll generally accept much less money for those last piles of produce.

3. Buy concentrated products. Don’t pay for water and excess packaging. Look for concentrated products that you can add water to add home.

4. Buy in bulk. Ounce to ounce, buying in bulk is often cheaper than buying conventional sized products (and much cheaper than buying single-serving size). Just remember, the key to saving money with bulk food, is buying what you'll eat. Learn how to save $500 a year by buying in bulk.

5. Dig for discounts. Take some time before you go shopping to find deals and discounts. You might not find a lot in your local circulars, but you can find a ton of deals and printable coupons on-line. Use our guide to get started.

6. Check out ebay. Whether you’re looking for organic cotton clothes, wooden toys, or glass baby bottles – gently used is the way to go. eBay is an absolute goldmine for finding more affordable, safer products. Simply do a search for the specific product; look for sellers with a good history; and make your bid during the last few minutes of the auction to get the lowest price. Since it may take some time to find or receive items on eBay, try to plan in advance and purchase items for future developmental phases.

7. Start a community collective. Kids are constantly outgrowing things. Find like-minded parents in your community to swap gently used safer products with.

8. Skip high-priced “greenwashed” products. Since there’s a growing desire for safer, more eco-friendly products, manufacturers have started making a wide array of claims on their products to make them seem more appealing. Unfortunately, most of the claims are unregulated – so you have to be a savvy label reader. For example, skip the extra premium on the following products:

"Organic" seafood. There is no USDA certification for seafood.
Hormone-free poultry, pork and eggs. The Food and Drug Administration already requires these foods to be hormone free, citing concerns that the animals may not metabolize synthetic hormones quickly, leading to unsafe levels in the edible tissue. On the other hand, conventionally raised pork and poultry products typically use antibiotics to spur animal growth, so if you're concerned about chemicals making it into your packaged pork and poultry, look for antibiotic-free food instead.

Use the Consumer Reports Eco-Label Guide to help you identify which labels are legitimate.

9. DIY. Whether it’s cosmetics, cleaners, or convenience foods – you’d be surprised how cheap and easy it is to simply make your own. Start with these ideas:

How about you? Do you have any tips for how to save money on safer products?

Posted by Amy Carlson on 07/21/2010 at 05:55 AM

Don’t forget Amazon! Sometimes I can find items for $1-$3 cheaper than I would find it in the store and they offer FREE Super Shipper Savings a good bit. So, when I buy several things at once I can save around $20 than going to the store. But sort of like you said you have to anticipate needing things to give you time to do the price search, order, and wait for it to ship.

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