With food prices always going up, it’s more important than ever to be smart where you can and save money on your grocery shop.
The US Department of Agriculture reveals that food prices were 2.2 percent higher in March 2024 than in March 2023, but there are ways to cut down the cost.
7 tips to save money on your grocery shop
Discount expert Nick Drewe has shared five tips that will ensure you’re saving as much as you can.
1. Buy reduced items
Every grocery store reduces its fresh food at certain times of the day and places all of the items into one section. Usually it’s right before opening or just before closing, although the time varies depending on the store.
Find out when each store does its reductions and aim to do your shopping at that time to lower the cost. If things are going out of date, you can freeze them – but don’t buy things just because they’re cheap if you won’t eat it.
2. Wait for things to run out
It’s sometimes tempting to stock up the fridge and cupboards just because you fancy a more interesting snack, but it’s more cost-effective to wait until all the food you have runs out before you make a trip to the shops.
Wait until food like rice, pasta, crisps and frozen veg have almost run out and only buy things you’ll actually use, that way food won’t just sit in the cupboards for months on end. Uneaten food = wasted money!
3. Buy in bulk
Buying essential items like toilet roll in bulk can save you loads of money because the cost of each individual unit goes down. The initial cost may be greater, but over time you’ll start to see some huge savings.
Some items that are good to buy in bulk include laundry detergent, dishwasher tablets, rice, pasta, teabags, flour, sugar, nappies and wet wipes. Often, you can find them much cheaper than the retail price.
4. Wrap greens in foil
Another tip is to wrap green vegetables like lettuce, broccoli and celery in foil as this will keep them fresh and stop them from going off, ensuring you don’t waste any food.
The foil creates an extremely strong barrier that locks in moisture better than plastic, stopping your fresh greens from drying up and wilting as they get older.
5. Leave some veg out the fridge
It’s tempting to chuck all your vegetables in the fridge together, but onions and potatoes are actually better stored elsewhere. Fridges encourage too much moisture, which makes them go bad.
Keep both in cool, dry spots like the porch, pantry or cupboard, then you won’t have to keep replacing them every time you do a food shop.
Nick Drewe is a discount expert who founded Wethrift, an online coupon platform which helps shoppers save money.
