Turkey Wars 2011!

And so it begins....the annual war between the stores to get you to come in and buy your T-day turkey. I have been keeping track of Turkey prices for the last two years, it's interesting to me because I know (from talking to folks in the meat business) that most stores take a HUGE loss on the Turkeys.  They figure, if they give you a great deal on your bird, that you will most likely buy the rest of the groceries you need for the traditional feast at their store too, making this one of the most competive times of the year for the grocery business!

Here are this year's Turkey prices and comparisons to 2010 and 2009:

Albertsons:

2011: 
Farm Fresh Basted or Honeysucket White Frozen whole Turkeys (16 pound or larger), $0.31 cents/lb. or $0.41 cents per pound (under 16 pounds) with a minimum $50.00 purchase.  Additional Turkeys are regular retail price at $1.49/lb.
(check your stash for $1.00/1 Honeysuckle Turkey coupons that were available recently)

Lil' Butterball Turkeys, grade A Frozen, $1.99/lb.
Butterball Frozen Whole Turkey, $1.69/lb.
Honeysuckle Frozen Bone-in Turkey Breast, $1.99/lb.

Butterball Fresh Whole Turkey, $1.89/lb. (did you get that $2.00/1 Butterball Printable yesterday?)
Jennie-O Fresh Turkey, $1.59/lb.
Wild Harvest Organic Fresh Turkeys, $2.49/lb.
- $3.00/1 Fresh Whole Turkey Albertsons Store Coupon (front page of ad)

2010:
Farm Fresh Frozen Basted Turkey, $1.29/lb.
Spend an additional $25.00 and it will be .27 cents/lb. for a 16 - 22 pound Turkey, or .37 cents/lb. for a smaller Turkey. The $25.00 required purchase does NOT include the price of the Turkey.
Butterball Frozen Turkeys, $1.59/lb. 
Jennie-o Fresh Turkey, 12 - 22 lbs., $1.49/lb.
Wild Harvest Fresh Turkey, $2.49/lb. 

2009:
Village Market frozen basted Turkey, .37 cents per lb up to 16 lb, over 16 lb .27 cents per lb, with additional $25.00 purchase,  $1.29/lb. w/o additional purchase.
Butterball frozen Turkeys, $1.59/lb.
Butterball fresh Turkeys, $1.79/lb.
Wild Harvest whole Turkey (organic), $2.49/lb.

See more Albertsons deals and Doubler ideas from The Krazy Coupon Lady!

Fred Meyer:

{photo credit:  Raking in the Savings}

2011:
Spend $150.00 = Free Frozen Private Selection 10 - 23 lb. Turkey
Spend $100.00 = .49 cents/lb.
Spend $50.00 = .69 cents/lb.
This is worth considering if you have a big ticket item or two on your Christmas list!

Butterball Frozen Turkey, Grade A, $1.99/lb.
- $2.00 Store coupon from Sunday's Ad
- $2.00 Printable coupon that was available for a split second yesterday!

Private Selection Organic Turkey, $2.99/lb.

Tony Chachere's Tur-Duc-Hen, $59.99 each
- $5.00 Store coupon from the monthly Extra Savings Booklet
= $54.99

2010:
Spend $150.00 = Free Frozen Private Selection 10 - 20 lb. Turkey
Spend $100.00 = .29 cents/lb. (.49 cents/lb. last year)
Spend $50.00 = .49 cents/lb. (.59 cents/lb. last year)

2009:
Spend $150.00 = Free Frozen Private Selection 10 - 20 lb. Turkey
Spend $100.00 = .49 cents/lb.
Spend $50.00 = .59 cents/lb.

Check out Frugal Chic Living for more Fred Meyer deals!

Rosauers:

2011:
Premium Norbest or Jennie-O Whole Frozen Turkey, $.49/lb. with an additional $25.00 purchase (excludes Turkey) $1.39/lb. without the additional $25.00 purchase.

2010:
Premium Norbest Whole Frozen Turkey, 10 - 24 lb. .49 cents/lb with a $25.00 purchase. 

2009:
Premium Norbest whole Turkey, .39 cents per lb with a $25.00 purchase.

More Rosauers deals here!
Safeway:

2011:
Spend $150.00 = FREE Safeway Frozen Turkey
Spend $100.00 = $.39/lb. Safeway Frozen Turkey
Spend $50.00 = $.59/lb. Safeway Frozen Turkey
** Starting Friday, 11/18, through Monday, 11/21 - Get a $10.00 OYNO when you spend $75.00 in a single transaction. **

Honeysuckle Whole Frozen Turkey, $.99/lb.

2010:
Safeway Turkey, 16 lbs or larger, .29 cents/lb. with a $25.00 purchase
.39 cents/lb. for 16 lbs. and under.
Honey Suckle Turkey, 16 lbs. or larger, .79 cents/lb. with a $15.00 purchase
Safeway Select Fresh Turkey, $1.29/lb.

2009:
Safeway frozen Turkey, .27 cents per lb. if over 16 lbs, .37 cents per lb. if under, with $25.00 minimum purchase.
Honey Suckle frozen Turkey, .69 cents per lb. with $25.00 minimum purchase.
Safeway Fresh Turkey, .99 cents per lb. with $25.00 minimum purchase.

More Safeway deals here!

Super-1: Spokane, Ellensburg, Colville and Walla Walla

Whole Grade A Frozen Turkeys, $.48.lb. with $25.00 purchase (excludes the Turkey)

I didn't record Super-1 Turkey prices for 2010 or 2009 :(

Check out more deals at Super-1 over at Raking in the Savings!  Lots of nice FREEBIES this week for Idaho shoppers!

Trading Company:

2011:

Butterball Turkeys, $.97/lb.

No intel on 2010 or 2009.

Yoke's:

2011:
Butterball Premium Whole Frozen Turkeys, $.99/lb.
Norbest Fresh Whole Turkey, $1.29/lb.
Norbest Fresh Turkey Breast, $2.29/lb.

2010:
Butterball Premium Frozen Turkey, .89 cents/lb.

2009:
Butterball frozen Turkey, .89 cents per lb.
Norbest Fresh Turkey, $1.27/lb.
Smoked Turkey, $2.99/lb.

More Yoke's deals here!

I Luvs the Old Man Meat Bin!!

And I think he luvs me too :)

Ran up to Safeway to grab a couple more bags of Salad and found these very nice packages of Pork just being loaded into my favorite section of the meat department, the old man meat bin! 

2 packages of Pork Shoulder Country Style Ribs @ $7.00 and $5.65
2 packages of boneless Pork Loin Chops @ $5.40 each
1 package of Open Nature Pork Loin Chops @ $7.76
Subtotal = $26.11

- 50% markdown
- $1.00/1 Any Open Nature tearpad MF (found a while back)

Total OOP = $12.06 for the whole shabang!  That will be 15 servings of meat, basically 3 meals for my family of 5, which works out to $0.80 per serving (plus left overs :)

Are you freaked out about buying meat from the reduced bins?  Don't be, you will find some significant savings there on the most expensive items in the grocery store!  Read more on how to save money on meat and tips to make sure the meat is good here :)

Saving Money on Meat!



When asked what is the most expensive item on their grocery lists, most people will say meat. And it's true, in some cases meat prices have gone up over 30% then they were last year.

I am going to tell you about a little trick I learned a long time that helps me save a TON on meat.  I call it The Old Man Meat Bin :)

Most stores have a small section in the meat coolers where they will put items that are close to their "sell by" dates, and this is where I find my best deals!  Like yesterday, I was at my favorite Safeway and found family pack Chicken Thighs in the Old Man Meat Bin for 50% off!  The Thighs were already reasonably priced at $1.29/lb. anyway, but with the extra 50% off, I was able to pick up a little over 18 pounds for just $0.65 cents per pound!  This purchase will provide meat for at least 6 different meals for my family of 5, working out to just under $2.00 per meal!

If your feeling a bit anxious about buying meat from the reduced bin, don't be.  By law, all fresh meat products must have a "sell by" date on them.  Those are:

4 days from the date of packaging on Beef.
6 days from the date of packaging on Pork and Chicken.
3 days from the date of packaging on Fish and Seafood.

Once that date comes around stores have to throw out the product or freeze it. Most Meat departments don't have a lot of extra Freezer space and prefer to get something out of the product as opposed to nothing, so as the date nears they will reduce the price hoping to recoup some of the cost of carrying that product. 

The Chicken I purchased had a "sell by" date of 10/21/11, they were packaged for sale on 10/15/11.  I bought them on 10/20/11, giving me plenty of time to safely repackage them in the portions I want and place in the freezer for future meals.   

When purchasing meat (any meat!), make sure to check the "sell by" date.  Remember that it is people who stock and rotate those items and sometimes packages will get missed.

Check the packaging for any holes.  Holes in the wrapping allow air in and air = exposure to bacteria. 

Smell the package.  Properly wrapped fresh meat should have NO SMELL AT ALL. Meat that is spoiling, no matter how well wrapped, will smell. 

Check out the USDA website for a complete guide on meat safety!