Let’s face it we are pretty much all noticing rising cost of living at the moment. Energy bills, at the petrol pump and of course in our weekly food shop. There is no getting away from it, we are having to spend more on essentials. However there are some ways we can shop a bit smarter to keep a bit more of your hard earned money in your pocket. We currently spend on average £3500 a year on food shopping and that’s without adding the weekend budget for take aways and eating out, which can clock up around £1500-£1700 a year. So the obvious first cut would be less take aways and dinners out. It’s time to invite your mates over and cook up a big pot of something easy or do an everyone bring something evening (less cooking for you).
But when it comes to heading to the supermarket we can be a little smarter.
- Check what you already have in the cupboard before heading out. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve bought double of something I already had a to home. You can keep track of what you already have with an app like this one.
- Plan your meals – I know this seems like a pain sometimes but a few moments of planning could save you a fair few quid and cause less waste. I don’t about you but I HATE throwing food away.
- Buy frozen – if you haven’t managed to plan, at least buy some frozen veg. They can be added to anything, are cheap and they last.
- Buy the wonky fruit and veg – we have all been trained to think that our fruits and vegetables are perfectly shaped but that is just what is sent to the supermarket. Each year over a million tonnes of food goes to waste and part of that is purely because it’s the wrong shape! Try an ugly veg box like OddBox
- Try out some budget friendly recipes – BBC Good Food have some great low cost recipes to try
- Batch cook – the best thing about batch cooking is not only that you end up with less waste and cost, it saves time. On those nights when you can’t be bothered and you might end up ordering take away, the decision is already made for you.
- Love your left overs – there is always another meal or snack to be had from what you have left, get creative.
I hear ‘you can’t eat healthy on a budget’ a lot but there are so many ways to make eating on a budget healthyI if you plan ahead, do some research for some cheap and simple recipes, prep and batch cook and make the most of your freezer you can save money and look after your health.
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