Week 14 – Saving Money at the Check Out

Many of us are feeling the pinch with increasing interest rates, cost of fuel and the ever-rising cost of our grocery bill.

In 2022, Australia has seen the fastest rise in food prices since 2011, led by fruit and vegetables increasing from 9.1 percent in June, to 18.6 percent in August. For many of us our weekly shop is a significant chunk of our income and potentially one of the only areas we can modify to relieve the pressure of living costs. I’m here to provide you with some helpful tips to reduce your shopping bill.

1. Shop home brand: home brand products can be up to 40% cheaper than name brands. Supermarkets can achieve this by saving on research and development, marketing and packaging.
2. Buy fruit and vegetables in season. Out of season produce are often imported meaning the cost is passed on to consumers.
3. Try buying frozen vegetables if you are often throwing fresh ones out.
4. If buying fresh fruit and vegetables, remove older produce from the fridge crisper and place in the fridge at eye height and use those vegetables first. This will save you over buying at your next shop and reduce food waste.
5. Buy foods on special, especially if the food items can be stored safely for use later e.g., bulk meat for the freezer, frozen meals, tinned food. Look at the weekly specials in catalogues or online. Go to the supermarket at the end of the day for more discounts.
6. Read the price label.  Most labels on supermarket shelves show the cost per 100g (or equivalent) for an item, which can help show the most cost-effective option, especially useful when items are on sale.
7. Buy in bulk. For example, buy big tubs of yoghurt and divide into smaller containers
8. Do your own slicing. pre-cut items are awesome for convenience however they come at an extra cost. This can be seen particularly in pre cut fruit and vegetables as well as cheese. Go for a block of cheese instead.
9. Only buy what you need. This may require some meal planning and writing a shopping list. Only go down the isles you need to and potentially shop online to avoid impulse buying. Another trick is never go shopping hungry, you will always buy extras to fill your hunger craving.
10. Include a couple of meat free days in your week. Overall meat is one of the more costly items we buy each week so by reducing the amount of meat you eat will significantly reduce your grocery bill.

For this week’s recipe I have chosen a simple breakfast only using 3 ingredients with a total cost of 72 cents per meal!

THIS WEEK’S RECIPE: Banana Pancakes

Written by Alissa Larrescy and Brady Schulz (Accredited Practising Dietitians, Accredited Nutritionists, Advanced Accredited Sports Dietitian from Healthy Lifestyles Australia)