Allergy friendly products on a budget - Is it possible????

In my ongoing quest to try to be budget conscious (see, Honey, you've had such a great influence on me!) while eating wholesome, allergy-friendly, nutritious foods, I recently stumbled upon a new program from amazon.com called Amazon Subscribe & Save. I'm not sure how long they've been doing this, and it's certainly possible that I'm late to the game...but I thought I'd pass it on anyway.

Here's the gist:
• automatically receive a new shipment of the item in intervals you select--every one, two, three, or six months
• get a discount on the everyday price (usually 15%)
• get free shipping on every Subscribe & Save shipment
• pay for each order only when the item is shipped
• have the option to cancel at any time

So, for me, I buy items I use most often in bulk - that alone saves money. Here's some examples of how this program benefits our wallet:

1. I love Millet Puffs Cereal. 12 bags costs $17.54 (or $1.46/bag). This is a great price, as my local health food store sells it for $1.99/bag. I easily go through 12 bags in 6 months, so I order these through Subscribe & Save for free shipping and an extra 15% off = $1.24/bag!!!!! A savings of $0.75/bag or $18.00/year.

2. I'm all about Erewhon Corn Flakes, which cost $4.98/box at my health food store. At amazon, they cost $21.54 for a 6 pack, or $3.59/box - a huge savings already. When I set up an automatic shipment for every 3 months, I get free shipping and the 15% discount, so they end up costing $3.05/box. For me, this is a savings of $46.32 in a year.

3. I've been using Organic Coconut Milk for everything...smoothies, ice pops, homemade yogurt (watch for recipes and pictures in upcoming blogs!). A 24-pack is $47.50 or $1.98/can - about the same as my local store. With the 15% discount, it drops to $1.68/can. Since I can go through about 8 - 10 cans/month, that's a savings of $36/year.

4. When I use a sweetener, I reach for Organic Raw Blue Agave. I save $2/bottle by buying it on amazon, and $3.78/bottle with Subscribe & Save, for an annual savings of $22.68. If the shipment is about to come and I don't need anymore, I just cancel it!

Just with these 4 examples, I'm saving myself $123/year! Other items I'll be using this for include coconut flour, xatham gum, hemp milk, hemp seeds, other GF flours, crackers...I've got to crunch some numbers, but it looks like items such as toilet paper, napkins, paper towels, green laundry detergent, and green cleaning products might also be significantly cheaper.

Some of the fine print:
* prices on amazon change, so the 15% off is on the price of the item on the day it is shipped
* not every product that amazon grocery sells in eligible for this program. If you search for the item you are interested in, you can quickly tell if it's eligible by looking at the right hand column where it will say "save with Subscribe & Save" and have the 4 options for how often to ship it - 1, 2, 3, or 6 months.

I hope you find this to be helpful for your budget. While I DO NOT receive any money from the products I discuss or recommend on this blog, I do receive a small percentage of any order placed at amazon.com by clicking through this blog...it's part of how I keep my personal coaching & consultation fees low, and how I can offer free workshops. Rest assured, I try every product I blog about and give you my honest opinion! Thank you for your support.

Oh, and, believe it or not, I am a big supporter of buying locally and supporting your health food stores and natural grocers. Heck, the ones near me practically know me by name! I will continue to go to them for items I need weekly, as I believe that this is very important.