We buy in bulk to save money, but which items won’t go bad over time? Here’s a great list of 20+ healthy foods that will last at least a year in storage. Check out my other articles on how to afford organic food and my 20 ways to save money on real food in the kitchen.
Buying in bulk is one of the fail-proof grocery tips that works consistently, time and time again.
However, the biggest counter to the theory of buying in bulk is not being able to use it all up before it goes bad.
But what are the best healthy foods to bulk buy? What items (other than household supplies, paper towels, and trash bags) can I buy in bulk to save money that will last longer than a month or two?
As it turns out, there are quite a few. Some of these ideas require a freezer, but the majority of them will last just fine stored unopened in a pantry or basement. You can also divide out some of your bulk items to create a stockpile for emergency use that can be rotated and replaced for as little as $5 a week.
The next time you build your shopping list, consider buying some of these items in bulk. Knowing that they won’t go bad, the only question that remains is do you have enough space to store them?
The Best Healthy Food to Buy in Bulk
What are the best groceries for bulk buying?
- Whole Grains. Think wheat, spelt, einkorn, etc. You’ll need a grain mill, but you’ll be amazed at how delicious freshly milled bulk flour is!
- Rice (brown or white)
- Beans & Lentils
- Pasta
- Oats (all varieties)
- Popcorn
- Meat. Store meat in sealed dinner-sized portions in the freezer, rather than in glass jars.
- Maple Syrup. Maple syrup will keep indefinitely if left unopened, so aim to buy a case of smaller glass jars, rather than one big jar.
- Honey. Unopened, honey will keep indefinitely. Once opened, its expected shelf life is about two years so long as it is kept in a sealed container.
- Coconut Oil.
- Butter. Store butter in the freezer.
- Canned Fish. Similar to maple syrup, it would be easier and more practical to buy a case of smaller cans than one large can.
- Canned tomatoes
- Vinegar
- Whole Peppercorns
- Ketchup
- Mustard
- Frozen Vegetables. Like meat, store sealed in dinner-sized portions in the freezer.
- Dried Fruits
- Nuts in a Shell. Don’t forget the nutcracker if you don’t have one!
- Sugar
- Salt
A Few Quick Tips for Long(er) Term Food Storage When Buying in Bulk
- Always use airtight containers. Think lids with seals, not chip clips or rubber bands, or paper clips. Keeping moisture and air out is vital to keeping your food fresh and pest-free while in storage.
- What type of containers should you use? Glass is always best since chemicals won’t leak into your food, and it’s your most frugal option if you already have it on hand.
Small Storage
- Mason jars or reclaimed glass jars (that once held spaghetti sauce or peanut butter) are perfect for storing smaller amounts of food. Even if you have to use several jars for the same item, they are still your most frugal option.
Medium Storage
- If you use one particular item fairly often in the kitchen, want to have plenty on hand, and don’t have space for tons of jars, you can invest in a few half-gallon glass jars.
- For items that you REALLY use a lot of, like whole grains if you mill flour on a weekly basis, a gallon glass jar would be a worthwhile investment. A good example of this for my family would be oats.
Large Storage
- When you buy larger quantities of food, like 10+ pounds, you’ll want to invest in food-grade storage containers. These 5-gallon buckets and lids are BPA-free and have a really tight seal. So much so, that a lid opener is recommended.
Note: Just to give you an idea, a 5-gallon bucket will hold about 37 pounds of whole wheat.
FAQs
There are many stores but my favorite supplier for when I buy bulk items is Costco. But are Costco membership fees worth the cost? Here are my guides on shopping at Costco.
1. A frugal real food guide to healthy food at Costco
2. Real, affordable, gluten-free food at Costco
3. Which is cheaper, Costco or Aldi?
Some things that shouldn’t be bought in bulk at the grocery store are bread, fresh produce, cleaning products that will not be used within a year, and anything you won’t be able to freeze or eat before it goes bad.
The pros: save money with low prices, less packaging, and stock up on things you need. The cons: making sure the bulk price is a better deal, could result in wasting food.
How to Save Money on Storage Containers When You Buy in Bulk
The cost of containers themselves can add up, so one way you can trim that is by purchasing food already in a suitable storage container.
- For glass jars, half-gallon and gallon jars of pickles are available at Walmart and you re-use that jar. To get the pickle taste out of the jar, fill it with a couple of drops of dish soap and hot water. Tighten the lid and turn it upside down. Let it sit on the counter for 2-3 days and wash out.
- For 5+ gallon buckets, make an initial bulk purchase that includes the storage container and simply refill from there. If the price is better WITH the storage container, continue to buy that one and repurpose the old bucket for items that don’t ordinarily come with storage-friendly packaging.
Make Bulk Storage Space Functional
I wouldn’t store a bunch of 5-gallon buckets in the pantry. Instead, keep them in the basement or even in a closet. Keep a smaller container in the pantry for daily use and refill as needed.
Write Instructions on the Jars
Write the basic preparation recipe on the glass jar before you throw the package away. You can use cute chalkboard labels, super basic white mailing labels, or a permanent marker.
Use this method for removing the label from a glass jar if needed.
More Ways to Save on Healthy Food
- Creating a Price Book
- How to Stick to Your Grocery Budget
- 12 Simple Ways to Avoid Food Waste
- How to Eat the Whole30 on a Budget
I got a paint can opener at Lowe’s. Same but cheaper than buying the actual
bucket lid opener. Think I will be vacuum. sealing my nuts in jars. Hearing they stay fresh longer. also do the same with popcorn. Can also grind it for cornmeal. You can also can ghee. It’s shelf stable for a while. I will be dehydrating beans and rice and vacuum seal for quick meals or making refried beans if I can’t fins the in the future. I have reused and water bath canned homemade jelly. Yes they do seal great.Dehydrate chopped onions, bell peppers, cabbage and vacuum seal for winter when prices go up. Did sour cream in dehydrator. Worked great and vacuum sealed. Just trying to have things on hand in case of storms or winter weather. Too bad to get what I need. My mom was very frugal. Loved she taught me practical things. Comes in handy either someone sick, weather ,Layoffs.
We love the quality and value from Azure Co-op, if you have a pick-up site near you. I get chicken feed, bulk wheat and spelt berries, bulk bags of rolled oats, salt, spices, oil, honey, frozen fruit etc. And I love to bulk shop at Butcher Box and get 2 months of meat at a time. All that good quality meat in the chest freezer means we really should invest in a backup generator in case of a really bad power outage though…
The other item you should buy in bulk if you have a local Co op or spice and tea shop, is spices and tea. I do it for the opposite reason, they die after a year, and you should aim for fresh spices. Unless it’s something you use a lot of, Costco may not be your best buy, except maybe vanilla or expensive spices like saffron.
In our state WA, we can take in our own jars so we save that waste.
There is a locally owned health food store in our town. If you are willing to take a full bag (usually 40-50 pounds) of any bulk dried foods, they’ll order it for you at 10% over cost. Last time I bought steel cut oats it cost $42 for 40 pounds. AND the oats were grown less than 100 miles from home. Any store that sells in bulk might be willing to do this for you.
Another idea, if you have an Asian Market in your area you can get things there much cheaper than at a regular supermarket. We eat a lot of shrimp ( we like the jumbo raw shrimp) if you buy it at the regular market it’s around $8 a pound but at the Asian Market its only $4 in our area. So we can buy twice (bulk shopping) as much for the same price as the supermarket. There are several other things that we buy there that cost 1/2 of the regular supermarket.
Plus Sprouts….if you have one in your area you can get fab deals on bulk items like oats for $.99 cents a pound. So much cheaper than the supermarket. Coffee in bulk is the same way there. They have a ton of types of coffee also for a fraction of the cost of the supermarket.
We also have an Amish market that we shop at and they have things that you can buy in bulk. It is a little more than what Sprouts charges but we are big on “Shop Local”.
We have gotten creative with our shopping to keep the budget in check. Also to keep the pantry stocked up for those months that we know there is absolutely no wiggle room in the budget.
I buy organic wheat berries, oats, rice and other staples in bulk from Bread Beckers. I replace the lids with gamma seal ones for ease of opening. We have a decent pantry that holds them. If you have a Bread Becker coop drop near you they have great products and orders are delivered 3X a year. We also buy local produce when in season like corn, roast cut off cob and freeze for soups and such in the winter. We have limited shopping in our local area as far as stores so bulk buying has been great for us.
That’s a great tip Robin! Bread Beckers is actually local for me, so I’ll have to include them as I update my price book this year. Do you get the produce from the co-op too? Or just in bulk seasonally?
What is the best container to freeze meat?
Hi Temberly! I use plastic storage bags in my home for various storage items that don’t fit well in a container. I wash them and re-use them, so to store meat, I use a bag that’s already been used once for something else. I don’t reuse the bags that stored meat.
Living in the country, I’ve always kept a pantry and I love buying in bulk. Nuts (stored in freezer), flours, grains, sugar, chocolate chips, coconut oil, palm oil, EVOO, canned goods by the case, mega meat sales for bacon & fish. Recently I purchased a gallon can of tomato paste. I know! Whatever for??? Because in the winter I go through alot and I dislike having all those small cans to haul to the recycle bins. I scooped out tablespoons of the paste and flash froze it on parchment paper lined baking sheets. Now I have them stored in freezer bags & jars in the freezer and no more messy cans to wash and dispose of.
I love this Kay – thanks for sharing!
Great thanks, I’ll check my Costco for these items. I”m also really trying to reduce my packaging waste!
I’ve been wanting to get more into buying bulk thank you for this article. I’m not sure where I could find bulk canned tomatoes/vinegar/ketchup/mustard and I’m also not sure how I would store them for long term use??? We are a family of 4 so it take some time to work through large quantities. I live in a large metro area and have Whole Foods in the area.
Do you have a Costco or Sam’s Club Dawn? They sell bulk of most of these items. Once I’ve opened tomatoes, I either plan to use them up (so pizza + soup + spaghetti sauce on the menu in the same week) OR I’ll freeze what’s leftover. Most often, it’s a combination of the two. Vinegar-based items are usually fine in the fridge merely because of their high vinegar content!
Restaurant supply stores are good, too
An alternate idea for storing 5 gallon buckets….we don’t have a basement and our garage is Texas-summer hot. Closets are full of the stuff that should be in closets.
Our kitchen has a tiny table for our family of 5. Because there isn’t enough room for chairs around this table, I built benches (banquet style) for the two sides in the corner. The benches are 24 inches deep and sized lengthwise for the space. The seat portion lifts up (no hinge needed) and allows for storage of 5 gallon buckets underneath. We have flour, whole unground wheat, beans, sugar, oats, pasta and popcorn in the bins. I don’t need to have a separate container in the cabinets because it is so easy to get to. We prefer the Gamma Lids that twist off easily. (We got ours from Azure, but they are also available on Amazon.)
Wow! Love the resourcefulness here Kathleen! Kudos for making a system that works for you!!
This is awesome! Thanks for posting.