Money & Banking
21 tricks to drastically slash your grocery bill
A thrifty food blogger has shared her easy tips and tricks to drastically slash your grocery bills.
Amy Sheppard, author of The Savvy Shopper's Cookbook, of Cornwall, UK, shared with Daily Mail her 21 top tips for reducing your food bills.
- Meal planning – The best way to save money on your grocery bill is to plan out a week’s worth of meals before putting together your shopping list.
- Shop weekly – It’s difficult to plan further ahead than a week as specials change and fruit and veg go off. Stick to a seven-day roster to avoid doing “top up” shops during the week, which will cost you more over time.
- Buy frozen – Frozen veg, chicken and fish are just as good for you as fresh – and it’s cheaper, too.
- Make your own lunch – Leftovers make great lunches so it's worth cooking up extra at dinner time.
- Grow your own food – If you can try to grow your own fruit and veg. Even if it’s a little herb garden, it will save you money on expensive packets of fresh herbs.
- Reduce food waste – Make a note of what foods you’re throwing away and stop buying it!
- Eat vegetarian – Vegetarian meals are cheaper, healthier and usually quicker to cook than meat.
- Look at your bank account – Do you have a realistic picture of just how much you’re spending on food? Make sure you know exactly how much you're spending on food.
- Cook extra portions of food – Make extra portions of foods like mashed potato, rice, pasta, and chicken to use for lunches or other dinners later in the week.
- Pay attention to prices – Remember, supermarkets change their prices daily so keep an eye for changes in prices, even your staple foods.
- Check out markets – Visit your local fruit and veg market for cheaper groceries.
- Go tinned – Tinned foods last for months and costs a fraction of the price of their fresh counterparts.
- Avoid offers – Unless you usually buy the products, don’t get sucked into buying “specials”, which are often expensive branded products.
- Set a maximum budget – And stick to it.
- Switch brands – Try switching a few products every week to see if it makes a dent on your budget.
- Stick to your shopping list – Only buy things on your shopping list (which is based on your meal plan).
- Change your supermarket – Compare the cost of your trolley with an online store to see if you could be saving money if you shopped elsewhere.
- Compare price per kilo – Look for the price per kilo to compare products so you know what represents the best value for money.
- Buy loose veg – Loose fruit and vegetables is often cheaper than wrapped products. You can also buy the actual quantity you need and use less plastic.
- Freeze your food – Cooking in batches is a great way to save time and money. Freeze fresh meat like chicken breast and mince and defrost when you need them.
- Buy cheaper cuts of meat – A slow cooker is a great investment to make tougher cuts of meat, usually the cheaper ones, into delicious dishes.
Do you have any tips to add? Let us know in the comments below.