Every week I try to keep the food shop to under £100. That includes everything that we need to buy for that week. Food, toiletries, cleaning products and maybe a bottle of wine to enjoy on the weekend.
Everyone knows about not shopping when you are hungry, doing an online shop, meal planning and setting budgets but here's some ideas you might not have thought about on how to save money on your food shop!!
Leave the car at home.
Obviously you can't carry a full months worth of shopping home but having to carry the food home will make you think twice about buying anything you don't really need.
Carry cash not cards.
If you are on a really tight budget leave your cards at home and just take cash, then you can’t spend more than you have.
Use frozen fruit and vegetables.
Frozen fruit and veg is often cheaper than fresh and they last much longer.
Avoid top up shops.
Popping to the shops to get one or two things can often lead to a basket or trolley full. I have found Aldi and Lidl the worst. You see a bargain and the temptation is too much.
Know your dates.
Use-by date goes in the bin! Especially dairy and meat products, it’s risky to eat these products past their use by date. Best before eat it! These dates are usually just the manufacturer advising when the product is past its optimum quality. Often these products are fine to eat after this date.
Shop local.
Your local butcher or farm store could save you money. Not all are cheaper than the supermarkets but it's worth trying out the ones near to you especially if you buy meat in bulk. I have found our local farm shop sells fruit and veg for half the price than the supermarkets.
Test the shops own range.
Just because it's not branded it doesn't mean it's not good. We prefer Asda's own baked beans to Heinz and Aldi's ketchup than Heinz too. My fella couldn't even tell the difference between Tescos own coffee from Nescafe. lol
Shop on the perimeter of the store.
The inside aisles of the grocery store are mostly made up of processed food that can blow your budget. All of the fresh food is on the outer edges of the store.
Learn what you can freeze.
There are lots of things you can freeze that you probably didn't even know about. A little research will show you the best way to store something if you are unsure.
Learn what times shops reduce products.
Every shop has a rota for when it will start reducing items and it's good to know when to visit a shop to get the first pick of marked down goods.
Buy in bulk.
Things that don't have a short shelf live and can last for ages in the cupboard so if you spot them on offer buy lots! Things like pasta or tinned goods.
Skip the packaging.
A pre-packaged bag of lettuce or a bag of bananas could cost double. Go for the unpackaged fruits and veg whenever you can. They’re cheaper, healthier and better for the environment too.
Leave the kids at home.
Little hands always lead to a few extra things landing in the trolley. If you can, leave the kids at home so you can stay focused on the shopping!
Use loyalty cards.
Sainsbury's Nectar Card is also available for use in other stores like Homebase and eBay and Tesco's Clubcard points can be transferred into higher value things such as days out and family meals.
Delay a few days.
Can you last for a bit longer with the food you already have in the house? If you delay going for a food shop as long as you can you'll spend less over the course of a month.
How do you save money on your food shop?
Fab tips! I always try to keep under £100 as well. Since I started meal planning I find it so much easier to keep to a budget. x
ReplyDelete