With the growing popularity of “couponing” websites and blogs that offer links, deals and advice on how get more bang for your buck, as well as TV shows such as Extreme Couponing, national grocery chains are firming up their polices they say to manage confusion but also likely to tamp down discounts.

With a national unemployment rate at 9 percent and a very tight economy, some who would never have thought of using coupons, now are.

Publix, which probably has the most liberal acceptance of coupons among chains operating in Middle Tennessee, recently announced the elimination of the popular “triple stacking,” in which a shopper could use a competitor’s coupon, a Publix coupon and a manufacturer’s coupon on the same product.

It’s part of a policy change that took effect May 23 throughout the Florida-based chain’s 1,034 locations.

“Publix will accept both a manufacturer’s coupon and either a Publix or a competitor coupon on the same item,” explains Publix spokesperson Maria Brous.

Publix is also trying to make “clearer” which competitor coupons will be honored at stores. Previously, according to bloggers, some Publix stores would take “anything with a bar code,” while others would randomly exclude stores such as Whole Foods.

Now, Publix no longer accept coupons from competing pharmacies such as CVS or Walgreens other than prescription coupons.

“I guess it would clear it up,” says local shopper Amanda Hilton who uses coupons extensively. “[Publix] would almost always take competitor coupons. That’s what made them different from Kroger, who doesn’t take competitor coupons, but who knows what stores will be on that list at customer service, and it could change from store to store.”

Broadly speaking, Brous says, Publix would accept national grocers within the vicinity of the store.

“For the most part, they are going to be traditional supermarkets within the area.”

In recent months, both Food Lion and Kroger clarified what coupons would be accepted, Food Lion officials firmly stating the store will not accept any kind of stacking and a maximum of 10 coupons for the same item per customer.

Kroger, which does not accept competitor coupons but does accept manufacturer coupons, made clear that it would not accept newspaper and electronic coupons for the same item.

“The policy was just a clarification of an existing policy that may or may not have been followed very strictly,” Kroger spokesperson Tim McGurk says. “We made it clear that you could only use one.”

Brous says the new Publix policy on how many coupons a shopper can use for the same item “remains the same” in that it will be up to the store manager. She said letting one customer buy out all the inventory is “not good customer service.”

“Our policy is to always have product for our customers when they want them,” Brous says. “That’s hard to do when you have an item that has been wiped out, but we always try to work with our shoppers.”

The first airing of Extreme Couponing shows shoppers lining up to purchase huge hauls of the same item, which may have given some the idea. Hilton says she believes there has been some confusion.

“There didn’t used to be a limit,” the frequent couponer explains. “I guess now you just can’t just line up with a cart full of Cheerios and 50 coupons without the manager getting involved.

“It would definitely be better to know up front, but now people are going to have to go to the manager to see how many they will honor at that store.”

Brous says making the policy official was not a reaction to a spike in couponing, and that Publix has had “avid” couponers before the advent of websites such as couponmom.com, coupons.smartsource.com, coolsavings.

Policies that will remain the same include:

• Limiting one manufacturer coupon per item
• Using original store coupon only (no copies)
• Valid Internet coupons only
• Dollars-off total order coupons limited to one Publix and one competitor coupon per order
• Manager approval needed for individual coupons above $5
• Order total must be equal to or greater than the purchase requirements indicated on the coupon(s) presented.

Brous says the new guidelines are meant to manage the chain’s relationship with those already spending considerable time to save money.

“We encourage couponing,” Brous says. “We have coupons available on our communications centers at our stores. We have tips on our Website on how to save money. We publish recipes on feeding a family of four for under $15. I think that the policy ensures that our customers know what the policy is so we can provide a positive shopping experience for them.”