Try to purchase as much of your families food locally when it is in season.
Split a whole beef steer with a neighbor and purchase a couple dozen chickens cleaned and dressed from another local producer. Buy sausage and bacon from a local butcher shop and eggs locally as well.
Pick and preserve fruit and vegetables through the summer and fall for winter enjoyment. Buy vegetables at the local community farm market each Saturday during season. Potatoes, onions, carrots, rutabagas, cabbage and squash and get in bulk and store in a cool dry place. Peas, beans and corn can be blanched and frozen. The most expensive ingredient is usually the container the food is in.
Local food is always cheaper and better. You know where it came from, who raised it, what it ate, how it was grown, who picked it and who preserved or packaged it. Local eggs are fresher and more yellow then any in the stores. You don't have to worry about hormones or antibiotics in local meat, and you don’t have to worry about all the meat recalls due to poor farming and handling practices.
By purchasing locally grown and raised food you are supporting your community as well as reducing your carbon footprint. Most of the cost of food in a supermarket is a result of processing, packaging, storage and transportation.