Are there any bulk buying discounts to be had on food in the UK?

Elisheba

Hi all,

Recently I have been watching and reading some frugal living websites, and the American ones in particular always recommend bulk buying food.  They seem to be able to go into a wholesaler like Costc0 or equivalent and buy what look to be 25 kg sacks of things like rice, oats and dried beans, and get a really good discount buying in bulk compared to buying smaller amount in other other shops.

Having had a look at the Costc0 UK website, and super market websites, and a general google browse - it doesn't seem to me like this sort of bulk buying discount is an option in the UK.  You might be able to get a slight discount on organic products at Costc0 on on the internet, but compared to non organic it is all more expensive than buying your Basics range standard 1 kg (or whatever size the that product might come in) in the supermarket down the road.  

Am I missing something here?  Surely there should be some bulk products available that are cheaper, just through economies of scale if nothing else?  I have a small store room and would be quite happy to buy 25 and 50 kg sack of dried products I use regularly if they saved me some money in the long run, and less packaging is good for the planet.

Thanks,
E

bargainbetty

Some places require business membership for bulk purchases (thinking cash and carry type places). I use places like Wing Yip, which is an Asian food wholesaler for bulk purchases of rice and noodles etc, as they do price competitively. They are also good for lager packs of meat etc - you just have to be willing to package them up and freeze them in portions when you get home  

comeandgo

My local Tesco does rice and pasta in 5 or 7 kg bags,  1000 tea bags, and a few other items.  not huge bulk buying but does work out cheaper than 1 kg bags.

maisie_cat

In larger supermarkets you can buy 3kg bags of pasta and 5kg rice. You'll need something to decant them into though and the savings aren't that great per kg.
We have a wholesaler near here that started selling retail during the pandemic when all the restaurants and pubs were closed, but it never seemed that much of a savings given the risk if the packaging was discovered by a mouse.
A 2 adult portion of rice or pasta is 20p so not a huge amount to be saved.
Having said that, I have 6 months stock of rice & pasta because I bought in 2.5kg bags when I could.
I do buy bread flour in 16kg bags, but I have lidded tins that hold 6kg each, I'd had them for years.

getmore4less

We bulk buy when cheap, issue can be how long you take to use stuff.

Eg 10kg bag of rice lasts us far too long and needs careful storage it will go a bit musty after a few years but washes out ok
Next one we are going smaller.

Depends where you live if there is competitive pricing, we have bulk Asian stock in our supermarkets

Yellow label discounts at the main stores buy to stock up clear the shelves if you see something

Often staple items go through discount cycles round the supermarkets learn the low prices.

Amazon with subscribe and save with vouchers can snag a bargain.

Farm foods if you have one often have ok deals on some items.

JGB1955

Our local Asda sells rice in 10Kg bags.  

LadOnTheHill

Asian supermarkets are a good source for some bulk products like rice, spices, etc. I often see big 20kg bags of chapatti flour for pretty cheap,  though I don't know whether you could use it for making leavened bread. There's probably a YouTube video that shows you how to do just that. 😁

We're lucky enough to have a card for our local wholesaler, who sells huge joints of meat for not very much money. DH once spotted a £15 joint of beef fillet that would retail for £35+.

You might find that approaching an independent retailer of the food you want to buy works. For example, a local greengrocer is more likely to be able to offer you a bulk discount than a supermarket.

Buying online might not get such a good result because of the postage costs. Food coops used to be a thing, years ago, where several people would get together to place a bulk order with a wholesaler (suma,  I think?) and then divy up the pallet when it got delivered.

MrsStepford

I've been an online Costco member for nearly three years now. Last two years I bought a tower fan and saved enough on Amazon Prime prices to save double my Costco membership fee, each time. 

I buy Valfrutta organic canned tomatoes by the tray and they are way cheaper than Amazon. However with Amazon Prime I get free next day delivery and with Costco, I have to pay 5.99 per grocery delivery. Filippo Berio organic EV olive oil in a 1.5L plastic bottle, is also much cheaper than the glass bottles at Morrisons. 

There are savings to be made and all the Kirkland Signature products I've had have been good BUT I think the bargains are in the electricals, beds etc rather than food, online. Warehouse members who visit a physical store, could probably pick up more bargains. Some of the things in grocery dept online are restricted by postcode. 

My local Tesco does big sacks of rice. Haven't seen them in other supermarkets locally/online. 

MingVase

I'd agree with MrsS. Costco aren't that good for food items and the delivery charge is a pain.

thriftwizard

I don't know whether this would still be an option, but I used to club together with three neighbours to bulk-buy from one of the wholefood co-operatives (Suma, IIRC) and things do work out cheaper that way. They've all moved away now, but I still buy oats in bulk, from Real Foods in Scotland - no cheaper, by the time I've paid transportation, but they are just better oats! I buy potatoes by the 25Kg sack from our local farm shop or street market, and flour direct from the mill in 8Kg sacks. I also have a M8kro card as I run a small business, although all I really buy from them business-wise is paper bags, but I also dip in for some of their catering packs & bargains; we recently found whole trays (12 tins) of chick-peas & kidney beans for 98p, for example. The porch is still full of them...

We had a biggish family and often had one or more extras to feed too, which is how I got into this, and have carried on now that we are down to a mere 5 adults here full-time and one extra 3 days a week. If you have good storage & can rotate your stocks regularly, it's a good way to save money & also to be prepared for the unexpected - like, say, having to feed 5 people through 10 days isolation!

JJC1956

I have noticed over the last year or two that the big supermarkets are now stocking business size items such as T Bags, Pasta and Rice too name a few, I visited Costco last year and bought quite a bit of stuff for an event I was catering for, whilst I was there I bought very large bulk items (much cheaper) for my home such as Washing Machine Detergent Capsules and Softener, these I haven’t seen in supermarkets (yet). You need to make price comparisons as quite a lot of stuff is available in Supermarkets cheaper than the bulk buy outfits, you have to understand that businesses use a lot of these outlets for the convenience not necessarily the price. If you were organising a party for instance, it would be much easier and cheaper to go to somewhere like Costco as you can buy everything in one place, I doubt you will be able to buy their large party cakes, Cup Cakes, Danish Pastries etc anywhere else plus they have sandwich platters which you can buy on arrival or pre-order, these places are well worth a visit but you need to work out which ones suit your budget/house. 
Obviously you will need some ID that is acceptable, my friend works in a school so she just showed her school ID to open an account, no questions asked. 
Please note: it is highly unlikely that you will be able to buy any form of alcohol cheaper at these outlets (apart from kegs of beer).
Also if you buy non-food items you will have to pay VAT, which you cant claim back unless you are VAT registered