Here's something to chew on: People can save substantially on their grocery bills if they will switch from boxed or prepared foods to cooking from scratch.

Janet Little, nutritionist for Henry's Farmers Market, says families of four can eat on $75 a week and a couple on just about half that if the cooks do a little planning ahead.

With the Food Marketing Institute estimating families spend a minimum of $115 a week on groceries, shaving $40 a week from the bill saves about $2,000 a year, she says.

Even better: By choosing to purchase raw ingredients to prepare meals at home, consumers can better ensure that they are getting their recommended daily allowance of nutrients, instead of the harder to determine dietary contents of pre-packaged and processed foods.

Q. You say the secret is planning ahead?

A. Planning ahead is going to save you money. When we don't have a plan, we spend more money at the grocery store and we buy things we may not use and so the food rots. When you plan a meal, you can stretch the food for three days.

Q. How do you do that?

A. Buy a whole chicken — or two — depending on the size of the family.

Roast the chicken and serve it with broccoli and brown rice. The next day, make chicken enchiladas or a casserole. Then there's soup and salad. One item stretched into three different meals.

Q. Got recipes?

A. Of course. Go to www.henrysmarkets.com for lots of recipes.

Q. You also tout other what we would call "old-fashioned" solutions.

A. Yes, like oats. You can buy them in bulk. ... They help lower cholesterol, and one pound will probably last you a whole week.

Q. Other suggestions?

A. It's crazy to buy the 100-calorie snack packs. Buy something similar in bulk, and it's a fraction of the cost. Or save money by going meatless once in a while. One of the biggest food expenses is meat.

Q. But we need protein.

A. Rely on eggs. They are a great source of protein. I always have a dozen at my house. Hard-boiled eggs are great snack items. There is some cholesterol, but also the yolk contains lecithin and lutein, so it's kind of a wash.

Q. Well, I don't have the time to cook every day, as I once did.

A. Then make a dish and freeze half of it. Eat the frozen half a couple of weeks later and it won't make you think of leftovers.