This tip is for Kroger stores, specifically Dillons, but I’m sure other stores do something similar and I’d love to know.
At Dillons, nearly all I’ve been too, somewhere near the “back” of the produce section around the bananas there is a wooden rack with net-type bags filled with discount produce. In my experience it’s just slightly misshapen or off-color produce marked down to $0.99.
I've seen "ethnic" grocery stores do the same--but for even steeper discounts. Big caveat--you absolutely have to use or freeze immediately, it really is produce at the end of its life, lol.
Also, since we're speaking about Kroger stores, Smith's has something similar for dry goods (better than other grocery stores I've been in). A few weeks ago, I got some boxes of pasta for $0.35 each. The boxes clearly got smashed by something or other...but it's dry pasta. There's nothing there to harm, lol.
I also got some BIG bags of tortilla chips (a no-name hispanic brand) for about $0.32 each too, on a different week. They were good chips. I think those were just on clearance because they hadn't been bought quickly enough and had probably been on the shelf too long...no damage to them, and they weren't stale or anything. With the price of chips lately, it was a steal--and I don't normally eat/like chips. (Although when I do I prefer tortilla/corn chips.)
At the Smith's near me, they "hide" this markdown area for dry goods in the center of the store, on an end cap in the grocery section, and I know they also have a "cold" markdown section over by the eggs and dairy, so it's worth walking the entire store, including areas you don't normally visit, to find the scattered markdown areas.
And when I was in an area with King Soopers, that store would often mark down their cold pre-cooked chicken, so I'd always visit that section to grab some of that, if available. Smiths does it too, but not as aggressively I've found.