The Grocery Shopping Trick That Encourages You To Buy More Produce

Find yourself checking out of the grocery store with two bags of chips you didn't plan to buy, three specialty fall items that caught your eye, and 75% less produce than you intended to fill your cart with? It's easy to accidentally forgo the fruits and veggies when you get sidetracked by other items, but there's an easy trick you can use to retrain your mind.

Bring a designated produce bag to the grocery store, and make it a rule that you have to fill it up before moving on to the rest of your list. It can be a small bag, but it'll stop the produce from being left off your list. This is a great way to encourage you or your family to try new fruits and veggies, building up excitement about getting to select fresh, seasonal produce during each week's grocery shopping trip. 

Try to keep a mixture of planned and spontaneous — make sure you have a list going in of any produce you want to use for cooking that week, but pick a snacking vegetable and fruit for breakfasts and lunches in the moment based on what looks good. This way, you'll have something to look forward to while shopping, but still make sure all of your produce gets used instead of being forgotten to rot in your fridge (it's happened to all of us).

The first step in bringing this hack to fruition is buying the perfect produce bag. You can get a mesh bag on Amazon or from your local zero-waste stores, or you can crochet your own with a simple, pretty pattern if you're looking to try something new. This way, instead of storing your produce in the plastic bags it came in, you can store it in a mesh bag that doesn't trap heat and moisture, letting air circulation help your produce last longer.

As far as selecting your apples, broccoli, and so on, you'll get the freshest perishables at the back of the case, since the stocking method grocery stores tend to use puts the oldest items, which will expire soonest, in the front. Then make your vegetables last longer in your fridge by avoiding pre-cutting them unless you plan to eat them in the next day or two, as cutting speeds up ripening and decreases their nutritional value. 

Similarly, pre-washing your produce adds moisture that makes it easier for bacteria to grow — so if you must do it for the sake of saving time later, make sure to dry all your washed items well before placing them in the fridge. Finally, putting your receipt on the fridge with a magnet and a pen nearby to cross off items as you use them is a great way to help you remember what you have and waste less food.