10 ways to slash your weekly food bill
Feature
by Rebecca Rutt
Food prices have reached record highs this year, and the supermarkets are not making things easier for us, stacking their shelves full of 'offers' that tempt us to buy more than we need.
But you don't need to fall victim to their wiles. Follow our 10 top tips on how to avoid their traps and cut down the price of your weekly shop.
1: The supermarket is not your friend
Don't be loyal to one shop. 'Back to basics' shops like Aldi, Lidl and Iceland may not stock your favourites, but you'll save money by shopping there.
'Bulk buy' offers may seem a good idea, but many 'buy one get one free' deals are only useful if you normally buy the product on offer in the first place and can store the extra items. In fact, smaller equivalents may work out cheaper, so always check the individual price first.
2: Buy reduced items
Supermarkets reduce prices on fresh items about to go past their sell-by date - you can freeze these foods to use later.
You can get even better bargains if you go later in the day, when prices are slashed further. Check the bargain shelves too, which are often hidden at the back of the store.
3: Make a shopping list
Avoid overspending by planning your meals and writing a shopping list. Supermarkets thrive on customers not knowing exactly what they want and buying items they don't need.
Also, don't throw away any leftovers that you can incorporate into other meals or freeze.
4: Shop elsewhere
Patronising your local fishmonger, bakery or greengrocer will often work out cheaper - and if you pass these shops on your way home from work, it means you won't waste time and money on extra shopping trips.
You can also save a lot by using 'cash and carry' stores such as Costco. Membership is £30 a year (but you can always go with a member). It's money well spent if you're planning a big event like a wedding or party, or if you're catering for a big family.
5: Buy in-season food
Buying strawberries in the depths of winter will cost you more because they've been shipped from sunnier climes.
Look for seasonal, UK-grown fruits and vegetables - you should pay less and will eat better, and you'll be supporting locally sourced goods.
Go to bigbarn.co.uk for updates on in-season food and recipes.
6: Get in and out quickly
Supermarkets are deliberately designed to confuse.
They are laid out in such a way that you are forced to walk past aisles of expensive goods, tempting you to buy more on the way. They also regularly move products around to ensure you have to traipse up and down the aisles searching for the specific things you went in to buy.
If you can, try and leave your children at home when you visit the supermarket, because many of the displays are designed especially to titillate their tastes.
7: Eat before you shop
Always avoid going shopping on an empty stomach as the sight of so much delicious food can be hard to resist.
There's always a generous stock of sweets and chocolates near the checkout, tempting weary shoppers - another ploy to make you spend more when your resistance is low.
8: Shop online
Buying your weekly shopping online is a good idea as it reduces the risk of impulse purchases. You can save a favourites basket, which means you don't even have to look at non-essential items, and you can still clock up loyalty points.
Also, although you need to pay delivery costs, you'll save money on petrol if you usually drive to the supermarket. The cost of a standard delivery is around £5 (though it's more expensive at the weekend or for next-day slots).
Even if you don't shop online, you can compare the prices of products before you go at mysupermarket.co.uk or kelkoo.co.uk.
Read: The Moneywise guide to online shopping
9: Drop a brand
A supermarket's own-brand range of goods is usually the same quality as more expensive branded items. Many also offer a cheaper 'basic' range; the packaging might not look as good but there's often little difference in the food inside.
For example, a 500g bag of Sainsbury's basic pasta is 9p, but the same size packet of Napolina Bronze Die pasta is £2.09, while an 800g loaf of Tesco value white bread is 47p, while the same loaf from Hovis is £1.10.
If you can't bring yourself to buy the bargain goods, go for the own-brand deluxe goods, like Tesco's Finest range. These are not always as pricey as branded products.
10: Use discount vouchers
Take advantage of discounts, vouchers, special offers and loyalty cards to reduce your outgoings. Most supermarkets have loyalty schemes and will give you money-off vouchers when you buy their merchandise; you can also get these from in-store magazines, online and in many newspapers.
Again, however, they are only good value if you normally shop in the supermarket or buy that particular product.
My local supermarket has just redeisgned the shop so that it is easier for me and many others to save money! It is not longer necessary to go right round the shop as they have put the groveries and frozen goods together at the front. So most of my shopping is done before they can start trying to tempt me! Thank you, for a great redesign. It was actually in my favour for a change!
I have tried the cheaper bread from Tesco at 47p and I am not at all a fussy eater, but it is toatl rubbish and try toasting it, sure it like eating a frizbee (not that I eat many of these ) lol.
Regarding Costco their website advises only Trade membership now. They appear to have stopped the personal membership they had previously.
+-is there anywhere we can find out the difference in quality and goodness between for example the 9p pack of pasta and the £2.09 one??? Many thanks.
Whilst being prepared to be flexible and make use of reduced or special offers try to plan the next weeks meals before shopping and thus not buy items which will be unused and horror of horrors have to go in the bin!
Some great tips here, pasta for example if making bakes is ideal.at 9p. Sundays at 15.30 will see masses of items reduced to pence. Best deal I had was morrisons sliced chicken breast original offer was 2 packs for 4 pounds but got 3 packs for 5pence each! Ideal for sandwiches the next day perfectly fine.
I think it is worth pointing out that whilst it is a good idea to visit supermarkets that sell basic items or any other supermarket for that matter, one needs to take into account how much is being spent in petrol to travel to them and would we save that much by doing so.
I've worked how much it costs me to travel a mile (by car) so perhaps when I feel up for a challenge I'll have a go!! Thanks for reading
If you only want a few items shop at a local shop it saves all the tempting things you don't want or think you need.
Tryit -it's only going to cost you 9p to find out!
In the old days we used to import a lot of beef from Argentina. It took six weeks to get here by sea and was kept at chill temperature ( not frozen) during the voyage. Consequently it was nicely matured and tender when exposed for retail sale. The point about this is that if beef on sale these days is almost at its 'Best before date' it is certainly not going to be unfit to eat if it is consumed after this date. In fact it will be probably be in better condition than if it has been hung for only a short time - provided it has been properly stored in a chilled condition all the time. Quite often the price is reduced for a quick sale!
I do my shopping at Iceland, for frozen vegetables which are brilliant. Lidl, Aldi, Netto arejust as good and never shopped at Tesco. Their frozen vegetables aredoubled the price of other brands.
No you can still get personal membership. Go into the store and ask as I have just got one two weeks ago.
The best economy is to make a list before going shopping - THEN STICK TO IT.
that way one only buys the necessitiies. I shop at Waitrose, Aldi and Lidl; with that and a really good local butcher all my shopping is done; the butcher who operates from a very small shop is cheaper than any supermarket; knows his cuts of meat and is a treasure.
Be careful! I have found that these deals are sometimes not as good as the same product further in the shop. You even need to check multi buys these days, they are not always the best buy.
We do our weekly shop, with shopping list, at Aldi and Lidl and our bill is a fraction of what it used to be! Do get a couple of things from Tesco, and Farm Foods is also exceptional value. Wish I had more freezer space to take advantage. Where can one get decent bacon?
I guess a decent butcher is the answer.
Makro membership is free. Aldi and lidl sell a lot of german products where they have higher food standards than here
Hi, My local Costco - Croydon - still has private memberships. We are restricted to after 12 on weeks days, but it is open until 10 at night and very popular for its cheap cafe prices eg. Filled baked potato for £1.25. Best bargains are on eggs (18 free range large for £2.76), herbs and spices, jars such as pickle, chutney etc, cans in bulk (12-24) and the meat is always 1st class quality. Good prices on branded clothing though this is always 'when it's gone it's gone!'.
Don't forget to use a cashback website like Quidco if you shop online for groceries.
If you register at mysupermarket via Quidco and do a shop it saves even more money for registering and comParing your basket cost against the big four supermarkets-however I have always found Asda the cheapest!
If you really can't bear to 'drop a brand' on food (though I find many of the store basics are just as good as the more expensive versions!), do so on other items, such as loo paper, toothpaste, cleaning products, etc. and leave more money for your food shopping.
i have tryed frozen veg but you can't beat fresh. morrisons have good offers sometimes ive noticed big price changes in all supermarkets so i would see people with alotments
ON a recent visit to Costco there were very few items that were better priced than Asda and other cheaper supermarkets big disappointment.
I disagree with tip no. 1 'Don't be loyal to supermarkets' although Aldi and Lidl do provide cheaper products, reductions on short shelf life food and weekly bargain buys Iceland does not little of this.
In fact their policy of 'rounded pricing' i.e. £1, £1.50, £2.00 etc usually means that products have been rounded up from their usual prices. Therefore a jar of mayonnaise that may be £1.65 in a supermarket would be £2.00 in Iceland. Iceland does not sell food close to sell by or use by dates reduced as it previously did several years ago either.
I can only assume that these products are thrown away and the price rounding policy which occured about the same time subsidises this practise.
As a regular Tesco, Iceland , Lidl and Aldi etc.shopper I think you may find that Icleand frozen vegetables are the most expensive due to their rounded pricing policy.
Peas, broccoli, green beans, sweetcorn etc are all less than £1 in Tesco, and of equal quantity and quality, unlike Iceland where frozen vegetables are roundly priced at £1, £1.50, £2.00 etc.
I don't blame you not wanting the Tesco bread, i got itonce and fed it to the birds. But i now make my own, for about 47p i can make a 70% wholemeal loaf or about half that if i stick to white, and it's gorgeous. I did have the expense of buying a good quality breadmaker but this has more than paid for itself.
Well said, we don't drive so it cost us £1.80 each on the bus with a 15 min walk, or a private cab @ £2.80 (which is cheaper even for 2) and a hackney back cost £4.50. Your better off shopping on line and giving the delivery driver a tip.
You can get personal membership at costco if you go in person
What I usually do is to try both the cheaper version and the expensive product and if I like the cheaper version, then stick to it and save money. Simples!!!!
If you are buying products that are produced in multiple sises such as dog treats, check the price per kilo. We have two Terrer dogs and we buy Denti sticks for giant breeds these can be almost half the price per kilo than the small breeds, we then snap them in half to give roughly the right daily amount.
yes try it for yourself!
Hello
Don't suppose you would mind sharing your bread recipe - I am still struggling to find one. Would be very greatful I hjave a 1lb bread maker.
Thank you a lot
Quality bacon available from farm shops and farmers' markets. Not full of water like the cheaper stuff from far flung places!
It should be on the packet and I think most supermarkets put details online.
Have bought the Lidl bread and it is rougher than the cheapest Hovis loaf at 85p. Dropping brands is a good idea but some are not worth it so it does mean you shop, try and then evaluate.
For the best bacon and other products check out our local butcher at:
mccaskiebutcher.co.uk
Forget distance as he will parcel to you.
All bacons and products shop cured, from free range animals traced to source, and superb quality across the range.
Cannot be beaten.
Jim
Food is the last thing I'd economise on, it's our greatest enjoyment and after all it becomes part of us. We are what we eat!
When we buy food we want organically grown and preferably local - both to protect the environment. Fair trade is important for some imported foods. We have our own hens for eggs and grow as many vegetables and fruit as we can in our small garden. What isn't in season isn't eaten. You don't need eggs all year round! We make our own sourdough bread.
We save energy in many ways: solar hot water, pv panels, heavy insulation, low thermostat, wood burning stove on which I cook, rarely using the car. And we don't sit around watching television - no set in this house. We had five children and we didn't have one then, they didn't suffer at all. We make and mend.
But we eat VERY well,we have varied and very healthy meals meaning that we too are very healthy.. And we have a very satisfying life.
This isn't recent, except the pv panels,we have always lived like this, at first through poverty then because we realised that it was better than any other way.
We have everything we need and don't want anything we don't need.