DBF is vegetarian, so we don't really buy meat, but...
Two years ago, I was buying some beans (chickpeas, black beans) and I noticed that, while all the other beans were $0.89 to $0.99 per pound, some of the ones I don't buy (pink beans? black-eyed peas?) had jumped to $1.29 to $1.39 per pound. The next week I went back, and another type of bean had made the jump... I panicked and went to three branches of the grocery store, buying up at the lower prices approx. 55 - 75 pounds of the beans I use most frequently. A couple of store employees restocking the shelves did laugh at me as I excitedly filled my cart with an ecstatic grin on my face.
However, less than a month later, I WAS VINDICATED! All beans went up first to $1.29 per pound, then climbed up to sometimes up to $1.59 or $1.89 per pound in the following months. They have not fallen significantly.
I am still working on some of that 'stash of beans (still good, just require longer cooking), though I have supplemented my stores from surprise deals here and there.
This is a proud moment for market timing. :)
(Also, if anyone knows restaurant supply stores or bulk purchase stores in the central NY or western NY regions where I can get beans at less than $1 per pound [without being a business], please tell me! Online sites are also welcome. I have tried looking into a few, but even with >50 lb orders, shipping usually makes this unfeasible.)
For any other vegetarian households (or heavy-duty bakers?), you can get a 50-lb bag of vital wheat gluten from Honeyville Farms (Dutch) on Amazon for usually around $1-2/lb (which is MUCH better than the tiny packets in the grocery store). You can try using camelcamelcamel.com to see if you're buying at a good time.