MILWAUKEE -- The first key to saving at the super market? Stay away. Cut your trips. Instead of shopping twice a week, shop for two weeks worth of groceries at a time.

Why? One study says the average U.S. consumer spends more than $10 on impulse buys every trip to the supermarket. By cutting trips from twice a week to once every two weeks, shoppers can save more than $500 a year on your bill and still get every item on your list.

Another tip: use one and stick to it. Check the food you already have at home, to make sure you will really use what you're about to buy.

You will also save by cutting down on waste. One recent study said the average family throws away 14 percent of the food it buys. On a $150 weekly bill, that is more than a $1,000 back into your pocket every year.

The one savings technique that more and more people are trying is buying store brands. You can save pennies to a dollar or more on almost any store brand item.

Wisconsin's largest grocery retailer, Roundy's Pick n' Save has produced what it calls its own brand for decades but is putting an increase emphasis on marketing it during these trying economic times.

"People are trying to make ends meet. They're trying to save pennies any way they can, and own-brand allows them to do that without sacrificing taste and quality," Roundy's CEO Robert Mariano said.