Whether you're a frequent shopper or a first-timer, there are some tips you can use to make your

shopping experience better.

Here's what you need to know before you head to Whole Foods.

If you're looking for both unique dry goods and pantry staples at a bargain price, the

bulk bin aisle should be your first stop at Whole Foods, especially when trying out a

new recipe or a new ingredient.

If you head here instead of the more traditional shelves, you can buy exactly the amount you

need.

That's great for you, because if it turns out you actually hate eating massive amounts

of quinoa for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, you won't be left with a ton of it to throw

away, let go to waste, or a lot to try to guilt yourself into eating.

On the other end of the spectrum, it's a good way to stock up on pantry items you know you'll

use often.

Ingredients as diverse as pink Himalayan salt, nutritional yeast, black lentils, and dried

mulberry can all be found in the Whole Foods bulk bins along with all kinds of grains and

seeds.

And while they're usually much less expensive compared to the items sold on the shelf, availability

can vary by location.

Another advantage of buying bulk is doing away with all the extra packaging that pre-packaged

goods come in.

Not only does it save you money on the product itself, but it's also better for the environment.

You can even bring reusable containers in from home, and all you'll need to do is have

the cashier zero out the weight before you fill your containers up.

The one ingredient you might want to skip getting from the Whole Foods bulk bins?

Nuts, which you can find for almost 50 percent less elsewhere.

If there's a product you already know you love, that you use often, and doesn't show

up in the bulk area, consider buying it by the case.

Whole Foods offers case discounts of 10 percent on most items, and you can see how many units

are included in a case on the shelf tag for most products.

This is a great way to save on things like pet food, canned goods, and paper products

that you know you'll end up using and which won't go bad if they linger for awhile in

the pantry.

You can get the 10 percent discount for buying large quantities of other items, too.

Take "Wine Down Wednesdays."

That's when you can get 10 percent off your first 1-5 bottles, and another 10 percent

off when you buy six or more.

There's a 10 percent discount to be had at the bulk bins too, for shoppers who load up

on 25 pounds or more.

As long as it's not going to go to waste, it's worth it, and that's where you may have

to do some serious meal planning before taking advantage of these offers.

This depends on location, but inside many of the chain's stores you can find a coffee

shop, a juice bar, and even a wine and beer bar.

But things there are changing.

In the past, when you ordered an iced beverage at the coffee bar or a cold juice or smoothie

at the juice bar, you would also receive a plastic straw.

That will no longer be the case as of July 2019, as Whole Foods became the first major

grocery store in the U.S. to ban plastic straws.

Whole Foods estimates that banning the straws and making other changes in their packaging

will eliminate more than 800,000 pounds of plastic waste each and every year.

In lieu of plastic straws, the company says it will offer Forest Stewardship Council-certified,

recyclable, and compostable paper straws, but they will have plastic straws available

on request for customers with disabilities.

Want to go one step further?

Bring your own reusable straw with you if you're going to grab a cold drink while you

shop, and help reduce waste even more.

Nothing at Whole Foods is more tantalizing than their salad bar, hot bar, and prepared

foods counter.

But there's a huge downside to giving in to your cravings at the food bar — it gets

expensive.

"I love shopping at Whole Foods.

Because I love organic produce and I can't stand having money.”

Though price varies by location, you'll usually find the salad and hot bar items priced at

about $8.99 a pound.

This is much more expensive per pound than most of the ingredients you'd find in a salad,

so you need to be careful about what you add to your bowl if you want to make the most

of your money.

Some tips?

Don't take the biggest container, or you might find yourself mindlessly loading it until

it weighs four pounds more than you were intending.

If you're making a salad, base your bowl around a lighter item, like spring mix or fluffy

couscous, and use heavier ingredients sparingly.

Weigh your bowl as you go using the scales in the produce section, and it'll help you

avoid sticker shock.

Use salad dressing you already have at home, or pour your dressing into one of the small

containers they have on offer, as they don't cost extra, and it won't be counted as part

of the salad's overall weight.

At the hot bar, choose boneless meats over bone-in, and consider skipping the side dishes

in favor of a salad-from-a-bag, steamable frozen veggies, or another simple side that

costs less per weight than what Whole Foods has on offer in the prepared food section.

Whole Foods sells thousands of exclusive brands, which means that if there's a specific brand

or product you're used to buying at a different grocery store chain, you might not be able

to find the same exact products at Whole Foods.

Once you do start throwing things in your cart, you might also notice that prices at

Whole Foods can be a little high — about 15 percent more expensive than other grocery

chains, including Kroger, Wegmans, and Safeway.

That's why you should keep your eyes out for the affordable 365 Everyday Value store brand.

Like most store brands, these products tend to be less expensive than their more traditional

and widely available name brand counterparts by about 23 percent, and you'll save more

on some products than others.

To get the biggest bang for your buck, consider the 365 brand for staples like sandwich bread,

eggs, ground beef, pasta sauce, yogurt, and more.

For the steepest discounts, look ahead for the Whole Foods 365 brand products that are

on sale.

Build your grocery list for the week around these items and you could end up spending

less than you expected the next time you shop.

Whole Foods may have started as a relatively small grocery store with less than 20 employees,

but these days the natural grocer is owned by Amazon, meaning it's run by one of the

most powerful companies in the country.

This is a very good thing for bargain seekers, because shoppers who have an Amazon Prime

account can actually get special discounts and deals at Whole Foods locations and on

Whole Food items online.

Prime members will get special deals throughout the store, just look for the blue signs that

denote those deals.

They'll also get an additional 10 percent off many items that are already on sale, which

are marked with yellow signs.

Other deals available for Prime members only will also be marked throughout the store.

To redeem your deals before you pay, you can simply give the phone number associated with

your Amazon account at the register, or download the Whole Foods app, which will be scanned

at the register so you can get your discount.

“Here you go.

Thank you, please come again, we have a whole lot of groceries."

Even better?

In April 2019, the chain started giving out even more exclusive weekly deals for Prime

members, and slashed prices on hundreds of other items throughout the store.

Sometimes you'll come across a great deal at the store, only to realize that the package

size is just too big.

Other times, you just need a little bit of an extra-special cheese to make a dish sing,

but you don't want to fork over big bucks for more than you'll use.

Remember, food waste is a huge problem.

That's where Whole Foods' customer service comes in handy.

Head to the cheese counter, produce section, the butcher, or the deli section, and ask

the associate from the corresponding department if they can cut the item you need down to

size.

For instance, if you only need a half of a standing rib roast or a few slices of bacon,

the butcher can re-cut and repackage them for you; you can get large wedges of cheese

cut into much smaller pieces; you can ask for loaves of bread to be sliced; you can

even ask someone to cut a particularly large cabbage, squash, or jackfruit into a smaller

piece for you.

They'll often use the remainder in salad and hot bar item prep, or pre-cut and put back

on the shelf.

No waste!

It's also a great way to sample new products in a more affordable quantity before deciding

to go all in, but remember, this is all done at employee discretion.

When Whole Foods opened its doors in 1978, it was a lot like a typical grocery store,

just with healthier, specialty ingredients.

Since then, a lot has changed, including the opening of their very first in-store bar in

2009.

As of 2017, there were more than 200 bars operating in Whole Foods stores across the

country, and a couple of Whole Foods stores, one in Houston and one in San Jose, actually

brew beer at the store itself.

Whole Foods pours wines and beers that are actually for sale in the store, from a selection

that varies by location.

That means you can try one of the bottles they're pouring from at the bar, then decide

whether or not you like it before springing for an entire bottle or six-pack, or picking

it up for your next dinner party.

Sitting at the bar at Whole Foods is also a good opportunity to chat with the bartender

about the best values in the beer and wine department, too, and they could very well

have a few budget favorites that didn't make it into any promotional literature.

Many of the bars within Whole Foods have specials that run throughout the week.

Look for events like local beer specials, different promotions, and special events.

Every weekday is a busy day, but it just might be worth it to carve some extra time out of

your schedule for a mid-week shopping trip because a lot of grocery stores, Whole Foods

included, turn over their weekly sale items on Wednesday.

A new batch of discounted items goes up for sale, and last week's items usually go back

to standard pricing.

Wednesday is the day of the week when the store will have the highest stock of their

weekly sale items, and, even better, Wednesday morning is actually the best time to shop,

too, with great deals and less crowded aisles.

We all know how uncomfortable a busy grocery store can get.

"Sarah…”

“Claire…."

Also keep an eye out for your store's Friday One-Day Sale, which features, quote, "a different

item from a different department at an exceptionally low price."

You can usually find them listed in your store's weekly flyer and by the signage in the store,

or you can call your local store for more details and to find out if they participate.

The thought of downloading yet another store-specific app might make you want to take some drastic

action against technology as a whole, but the Whole Foods app can help you save money

the next time you go shopping.

There are a couple of different ways that the Whole Foods app can help you make the

most out of your trip.

First, you can use the app to get exclusive coupons, or to see what items are on sale

for the current week, then build your shopping list based on those items to help save money.

The app will also show you which products are on sale exclusively for Prime members

that week.

By building your meals around the discounted items, you could lower your grocery bill more

than you might expect.

On top of the weekly sales, you can also see special events and offers at your local store.

Second, it's one of the ways that you can redeem your Prime benefits at the store.

Just download the Whole Foods app, connect it to your Amazon Prime account, and have

the cashier scan the QR code in your app so you can get your deals.

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