Article: If you brought reusable bags with you, don’t use them to carry your groceries: most stores prefer that you use the carts or hand-baskets.  Make sure you don’t crush smaller, delicate, or fresh produce items with larger items as you shop. If you're using a cart, use the upper section near the handle for delicate things like fruit and eggs. The produce section is where you'll find all the fresh fruits and vegetables on your list, such as apples, oranges, bananas, lettuce, carrots, and other produce items.  While each fruit and vegetable has a different indicator of ripeness, you generally want to look for firm fruits and vegetables that aren't bruised, dented, or otherwise damaged.  Try to buy fruits and vegetables in all colors to ensure you're getting the maximum vitamins and nutrients from your food. Remember that fresh produce won’t last as long as frozen, so only buy what you and your family will eat over the next week or so. If you want to purchase fresh or specialty meat or seafood items, line up at the various counters. Wait your turn in line if there is one, and when it’s your turn, the person behind the counter will ask if you need help.  Don’t be afraid to ask questions about the products. You can even ask for samples if you aren't sure you'll like something.  Remember that meat and seafood have short shelf lives if they aren't frozen, so only buy what you'll be able to eat. The bakery section is where you'll find items like bread, buns, and baked desserts like pies and cookies. Depending on your grocery store, you may even find fresh pizza dough, bread crumbs, crackers, and other baked goods in this department.  Sometimes, bakery departments will bake their own bread, and these loaves are often uncut. If you want the loaf sliced, take it to the bakery counter and ask them to slice it. Many bakery departments also make fresh cakes that are baked to order, and you can have these customized and decorated for birthdays and other events. Talk to the people behind the bakery counter to find out what services they offer. All your dried, canned, and baking goods will be located in the aisles in the center of the store. This includes pasta, rice, sugar, flour, spices, crackers, and cookies, plus canned beans, soups, sauces, vegetables, and other staples.  When buying canned goods, avoid cans that are dented, punctured, or bulging. Canned goods are great to have on hand, because they last much longer than fresh staples like produce, meat, and bread.  These center aisles are also where you'll find household items such as toilet paper and dish soap. In the freezers, you'll find frozen meat, prepared foods (such as burgers or meat pies), fruits and vegetables, and side dishes and snacks (such as ice cream and French fries). The refrigerators will hold dairy products, juices, prepared foods, packaged foods, and prepackaged meats. Frozen foods like fruits and vegetables that don’t have added ingredients (like salt or oil) are just as nutritious as fresh produce, and they are typically cheaper and will last longer. Just make sure you're going right home, otherwise your frozen items may start to melt! Some grocery stores also have items available in bulk, and this could include spices, candy, snacks, dry goods like grains and pastas, and dried fruits and staples.  If you take any of these items, make sure you write down the bin number for each item. There will often be white twist ties you can use to seal your bags and write the bin numbers on. Look for pens located near the bags. When buying items in bulk, pay attention to the price per weight. Sometimes things will be price per gram, pound, or another unit of measure, and this can add up quickly. Some stores will have scales that you can use to weigh your produce or bulk items, and weighing your bags will give you an idea of the final cost of your bulk items. These tend to be located in the very middle of the store, right in the center of all the healthy grocery staples. This is where you'll find pop, chips, candies, and other unhealthy snacks. If you can avoid going down these aisles, the junk food will be out of sight and out of mind, so you won’t be tempted to buy it. While it’s ok to indulge once in a while, junk food is not part of a healthy meal plan, and these types of foods tend to be very pricey.
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Place items in your cart or basket as you shop. Get fresh produce. Ask for help at the deli, butcher, and seafood counters. Get baked goods from the bakery section. Locate grocery items in the aisles. Stop by the freezers and refrigerated sections. Check out the bulk section. Try to avoid the junk food aisles.