Kroger stores and affiliates offer a Scan Right Guarantee, to protect you from being overcharged on items that do not scan correctly.

It happens to everyone—signs are left up after a sale, prices aren’t updated in the computer system, and once in awhile, an item will ring up higher than the listed price. With the Kroger guarantee, this is a good thing for our family.

I simply take the item and my receipt to the service desk after paying for my groceries and the entire price is refunded. But, I get to keep the product! It’s a nice reward for keeping an eye on your grocery receipts.

The key is to pay first, then request your refund. If you alert the cashier, they will simply correct the price for you. When the service desk has to refund the price on your receipt, you will get the item for free instead.

This worked well for us a few weeks ago, when the $12 box of cat litter I bought rang up $13.49!

I’m also not above buying the same item the next day, just to see if it’s been fixed. I was willing to pay for it at the sale price to begin with, so why not grab another one? The Scan Right Guarantee has been a surprising source of freebies almost every week!

What would you want to get for free?

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I noticed a little Grocery Shrink Ray action in the candy aisle a few weeks ago. This refers to the practice of reducing the package size of grocery products—without lowering the price.

And, it’s so. not. cool.

The idea is that you won’t notice a slightly smaller package, but you would notice a price increase on the items you’re used to buying. In the candy aisle? I noticed.

The “fun size” packages of M&M/Mars candy have gone from 8-packs to 6-packs. I remember when the fun size candy came in packages of 10. I also remember when “fun size” didn’t equal miniature.

First, they shrunk the candy bars a bit. Then, they started reducing the number in each package. All without changing the price. At this point, I believe we’re getting half as much chocolate than the original products—for the same $1.50 we’ve paid for years.

So far, I’m only seeing this from M&M/Mars, but I’m worried it’s only a matter of time before other brands follow suit. And, it’s not just candy! I’ve seen shrink ray effects on peanut butter, cereal, baking goods and more.

It always concerns me in the baking aisle because I have a lot of older recipes that call for “1 package” of ingredients. It changes everything you realize the 1-pound package you’ve always bought now only comes in 14-oz bags.

What is the shrink ray affecting in your pantry?

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Which means I have to do everything in my power to keep the produce budget under control.

Apples are our go-to favorite. They’re inexpensive, easy to pack, and one of the few foods that all 3 of my girls like equally. The decision comes down to not only which apples to buy (Granny Smith for me, Red Delicious for the hubby), but how to buy them.

Apples can be purchased three different ways—by the pound, by the apple, and by the bag.

When you purchase by the pound, you can select the apples you want to be sure you’re getting higher quality. They typically run about $1/pound throughout the year. In the fall, and at you-pick orchards, they can be as low as $.50/pound.

You can also choose your own apples when you buy single, lunchbox apples. They are smaller sized apples and typically priced around $.30 each.

Similarly sized apples are often sold together in 3- to 5-pound bags for around $4. With these, you take what you get and my find bruised or damaged apples.

To figure out which apples are the better deal, you need to find a way to accurately compare prices.

Personally, I prefer the lunchbox apples. Not only do they more easily fit into a lunchbox, but they are a more reasonable serving size for my kids so there’s less waste. Plus, it is typically the better deal. At $.33 each, I can get 3 apples where the same number of apples, by the pound, would cost around $1.25.

In a $4 bag, I get around 12-13 lunchbox apples, so it’s close there. But, being able to choose my own apples and get a mixture of varieties guides me to buying individual apples. By the dozen!

You know, so they’ll last the *whole* day.

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