How to save money on your food shop

Posted on May 06, 2023

As price rises continue to eat into our budgets, many people are looking to save money on their weekly food shop. As well as buying less, more people are looking for ways to make their money go further, so take a read about how to save money on your food shop.

Keep track of what you already have

We all know the value of making a grocery list, but if you’re adding things you already have the cupboards, you’re going to be spending money on things you don’t need. You’ll be wasting money AND food!

Rosie, a money blogger at the BBC, has managed to get her weekly food shop for herself, husband and one-year-old down to just £40, by staying on top of what’s in her fridge!

Head for the reduced section

Changing how you shop can have a big impact on your shopping budget. You’ll see your money go further by heading straight to the reduced section when you walk into the supermarket. If you get what you need by heading for the yellow labels, you’re likely going to make some significant savings.

Use your freezer

As your groceries get closer to their use-by date, try freezing them. Almost all foods can be frozen and adapted for another recipe.

Households waste around £700 a year by throwing food away. Making better use of your freezer is a failsafe way to dramatically cut down on waste and save you money on your food bill.

Understand the packaging

A lot of what we buy in supermarkets is packaged for their convenience rather than ours. Food is packaged to make it easier to transport to the shelves, but how often do we buy fruit and vegetables for them to go off in their own packaging.

Helen White, from the Love Food Hate Waste campaign, says there are small things we can all do to make our food last longer. Taking your food out of the plastic packaging as soon as you get home will help your produce last longer.

Make use of the experts

Tap into the years of experience from your local retailers! Butchers are a great service to take advantage of when you’ve got a budget to stick to. You can go into your local butcher and tell them you’ve got a limit to spend on meat for the week, and they’ll be able to tell you how to stretch your money.