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HSFPP Update # 207 —Not Noticing Deception Costs You Money

Message from Bob: In order to have the money to meet basic needs and wants, as well as to save and invest for the future, teens need to learn to be smart shoppers. One important step toward becoming a smart shopper is to become observant of marketing techniques, as well as the price you pay for an item. A great source that students can find in most school libraries and local Cooperative Extension Service offices is Consumer Reports magazine.

Message from Claire: I am a graduate student in the Family Studies program at the University of Kentucky.  My interests are in interpersonal relationships and, in particular, the relationship between the educator and his or her student. With the instability in the current economy, I am concerned about how well I use my money, especially for necessities such as food.  This concern has increased after reading the following articles. 

 

Web Site Picks of the Week:

“The Cost of Food: Facts and Figures” (includes charts and graphs)
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/in_depth/7284196.stm

“Food CPI, Prices, and Expenditures” (information about the price of food from the United States Department of Agriculture)
http://www.ers.usda.gov/Briefing/CPIFoodAndExpenditures/

“Historic Food Prices” (a look at how food prices have risen over time)
http://www.foodtimeline.org/foodfaq5.html  

 

Pre-Test Activity (Choose one):

“World Food Day quiz”
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/in_depth/6054876.stm

“Grocery Store Quiz”
http://couponing.about.com/library/blgrocery1quiz.htm

 

Supplemental Readings for Teens:

“The Growing Food Cost Crisis”
http://www.usnews.com/articles/news/2008/03/07/the-growing-food-cost-crisis.html
 
“The Price of Food”
http://youthink.worldbank.org/4teachers/pdf/development/story-dev-foodprices.pdf

 

In the New$… How Not Being Observant Costs You Money

by Claire Kimberly, Graduate Student in Family Studies, University of Kentucky

This past year I made a big transition. After living in a secure environment where my food, travel, and living arrangements were paid for, I moved away. Living on my own, I battle with every dollar I earn by trying to decide whether to spend or save it. Random costs such as a broken car, a repair of my front door, doctor’s appointments, etc., bring a shock to my bank account. However, no matter how frugal you are, you still need food. Unfortunately, the cost of food of all kinds is increasing steadily. 

There has been a high demand around the world recently for key ingredients such as corn and wheat. That demand, plus weather destroying crops, has raised the price of food by about 6 percent in the U.S. this year.

This rise in prices has also affected local companies. However, the way the companies are raising the cost is misleading. For example, Skippy Peanut Butter now sells 16.3-ounce jars rather than their usual 18 ounce jars. The cost and look are the same; however, Skippy has raised the indention on the bottom of the bottle to reduce the space for peanut butter. How many of you have noticed that?

Other cost increases that involve reductions in size include cereal boxes shrinking an average of 2.4 ounces. Some ice cream containers have gone from half-gallon packages to 1.75 quarts to 1.5 quarts. And Wrigley’s Gum has reduced the number of sticks in a pack from 17 to 15. These reductions in size help food companies avoid much more noticeable increases in price. However, the consumer experiences an increase in cost without always realizing it. And sometimes they actually get less food for more money.

Although a lack of wheat or corn in another country does not seem to affect U.S. students, the impact of costs has constrained everyone’s budget. Parents throughout the U.S. have to restrain their spending habits on items such as chips and soft drinks in order to maintain both a healthy budget and a healthy diet. News stories have speculated that this might actually be good for Americans’ health, as many of us might lose weight.

The best thing one can do to avoid the bad effects of these changes is simply to look for items on sale or to buy store brands instead of name brands if the ingredients appear the same. I now bring snacks to school instead of using vending machines. By doing this, I cut my costs by 50 percent; since I showed my friends the difference in costs, they began doing the same thing.

When I buy big-ticket items like a used car, I use Consumer Reports magazine to help reduce the likelihood that I will buy a lemon. Doing this kind of research also saves me money.

Look around and you will see many people who don’t shop wisely, who buy food for significantly more at convenience stores, who don’t take advantage of sales, and who buy on impulse. A person can easily go their whole life doing this and find they don’t have enough money in retirement because they spent more than they should have and didn’t save enough. However, if you become a smart shopper in high school, these habits will be with you for the rest of your life.

Sources:

Associated Press, “Economic Crunch to Take Bite out of Kids’ Lunch,” September 2, 2008. Found on MSNBC Web site: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26456208/

Ted Mininni, “From Supersized to Downsized?” July 7, 2008. http://www.mpdailyfix.com/2008/07/from_supersized_to_downsized.html

 

Group Discussion:

1. How does the cost of food products affect you directly?

 

2. Do your parent(s) or guardian(s) ever compare prices while shopping? How do they do it?

 

3. What can you do to help save money on food?

 

4. Have you ever used Consumer Reports for help in deciding what to buy?

Yes ___  No ___.  If “Yes,” how did it help you? If “No,” why not?

 

Activity:

Select one type of food for each student or small group. Have teens go to a grocery store and look at two or three products made by different companies and selling for different sizes. Ask them to record the amount of food in each item (e.g., ounces or pounds) and the cost. With canned foods, this can be tricky as a certain amount of oil or juice might be included in the weight listed on the package. Teens might try draining a can of vegetables, for instance, and then weighing the vegetables themselves.

Either during class or as homework, have teens divide the cost by the amount of food in the package. Ask them to decide which brand is a better buy and why. They might even compare ingredients and decide which is healthier. (Which has less sodium, sugar, or fat, for instance?)

 

Kentucky High School Financial Planning Program

http://www.ca.uky.edu/fcs/hsfp

The purpose of the HSFPP financial updates, video lessons, and Web site is to assist county Extension agents, credit union educators, high school teachers, and parents who home school their teenagers so that they may improve the economic well-being of our teenagers; and also to show educators how the HSFPP, updates, and video lessons meet Kentucky core concepts. The Web site, updates, and video lessons are provided by the University of Kentucky Cooperative Extension Service, and are free to all educators. The list of core concepts and order form for free program materials including the student guide and instructors manual can be found on the Kentucky HSFPP home page.

If you are not already on our listserv:

The video lessons are available only to members of our listserv and will not be posted to the HSFPP Web site because of the timeliness of the information. If you would like to receive our video lessons, which are sent to our listserv biweekly, on alternate weeks from these updates, please sign up at the following page of our Web site: http://www.ca.uky.edu/fcs/HSFP/response.htm

The use of any trade names or products does in no way constitute a recommendation for this product.