What do you cut out/down on when reducing grocery spending

raphanius

Is it dropping to supermarket own labels? yes but we pretty much ate value stuff all the time.

Is it cutting out meat. yes i make a mean chickpea curry and chickpeas are only about 40p a tin rather than a few pounds for chicken breasts.

Is it cutting down on the amount of food you eat. no. i wish i could cut down....:o

one thing i did learn from these boards is to do regular inventories of freezers and cupboards then meal plan around what we have in stock rather than keep running to the supermarket. plus i learned about bulking casseroles, bologneses and pie fillings with pulses and beans to stretch meat farther when i do use it.

You've been given some excellent advice but sadly I don't think any of us can sort it 'once and for all'. I feel I'm in a weekly battle with the shops on prices, it's a full time job keeping on top of it! There was a time when people kept a price book or had a figure in their heads that was good value, no more.:)

i feel this way too. its almost like having another part-time job on top of everything else i do just managing the household finances. i do think its worth it though, we are better off.

shandyclover

Many years ago I worked as a humanitarian aid worker on the Indian subcontinent. Our budget was very tight. Part of my job was to make sure all volunteers had adequate nutrition. I remember reading that oldie goldie book by Adelle Davis - I think it was called 'Let's be Healthy' One particular motto she said was 'particularly is funds are tight and you have to chose what you can afford to buy, chose what will build health, don't waste you money on anything that is not going to add to your good health'. That has stuck with me over the years.

Now I have my own family, we are back in UK and I try to stick to the same maxim. We try not to buy anything that cannot be justified nutrition wise. Of course there are exceptions and we do have movie nights when we will make popcorn, have tortilla chips and buy fruit juice and fizzy water and mix it but not alot of sweet or processed food exists in our house.

I also once read to get the most for your money chose seasonal veg and fruit over exotic stuff, it may mean you can't cook certain recipes until things come in season but beats paying a ridiculous price for stuff brought in from the other side of the world.

I've been told the fruit and particularly veg that has deepest colour is the most nutrient dense think brocolli, carrots, tomatoes etc. For this reason if I have a choice I will chose the cheapest but most colourful veg and fruit, often from what is available from Aldi's super 6.

Sundays we go to our local Tesco just before closing time and quite often manage to get 5 days of veg very cheaply, and we go through alot of veg having 3 vegans. The evening meal is dictated by what veg needs to be used combined with cuboard staples.

I've often discovered new recipes by typing in the ingredients I have to use into allrecipes.com .

We only ever buy meat and fish if it's been reduced.

Yogurt, soy yogurt, and cheese we make ourselves.

Alcohol is a twice a month treat.

Certain expensive things that are what you would consider very nutrient dense I do buy, mainly because I have 3 vegan children and 1 with a long term rare illness. Molasses (for it's calcium and iron content), Brewer's yeast, Soy protein, frozen berries. I think you have to be judicious though, it's very easy to get caught up with the 'latest miracle food' - there seems to be a new one every 6 mos!

maman

raphanius wrote: »

i feel this way too. its almost like having another part-time job on top of everything else i do just managing the household finances. i do think its worth it though, we are better off.

Definitely worth it! I feel it's like a challenge to stop being ripped off.

samejh

Vegies don't need to be thrown - Any wilters can be made into soup and frozen.

I think that the problem with trying to save for us is that we buy our food on our credit card (we pay the full balance when we are paid). So any monies saved doesn't get put into savings.

hobbitfancier

Bags of dried pulses - lentils, cous cous - all usually under €2 and last more than a week.

Value tins tomatoes and kidney beans for bulking out meals. I usually make a meal plan - but do tend to head to the reduced veg section first to see if i can get any inspiration from there