The Community Nutrition and Dietetic Service, HSE West, offers tips for getting the best value for your money on your food bill.
Take time to plan what you will eat during the week. A list will keep you focused when you get to the shop and limit impulse buys.
It is a very good idea to set yourself a food budget every month and divide that number by four to come up with the amount of money you can spend on food each week. Check for advertised food savings and specials before you plan your meals for the week and make your grocery list. Try to avoid going shopping every day, and buy enough perishable foods such as milk and bread to last for two days.
Buying basics first (fruit, vegetables, meat, etc, ).
Try to purchase bags of apples, oranges, potatoes, onions, etc. It’s cheaper than buying singly.
Buying in bulk is almost always cheaper. You can freeze perishable items (such as meat, chicken, bread, etc, ) in smaller portions to use as needed. A very good idea is to buy non-perishable items in bulk (canned foods, dried beans and grains, etc, )
Own brand or generic products are certainly worth considering to ensure that you stay within your grocery budget.
Seasonal food usually costs less and taste better.
Pre-prepared foods such as bags of washed lettuce/ prepared vegetables and even jars of sauce can save you valuable time, but they are much more expensive.
There are a number of ways you can reduce the cost of your meat bill such as substituting skinless dark meat chicken (legs/thighs etc, ) for white breast. Pork can also be an inexpensive meat alternative. Fresh fish can be costly but look out for the specials of the day. Canned fish such as salmon and sardines contain the same healthy omega-3 fats that fresh fish contain and are good value for money.
Keeping a well stocked store cupboard is the starting point for easy and economical cooking.
When cooking a big meal, make extra to freeze, or use the next day for lunch or a quick supper.
Use leftovers carefully—even the most basic of foods can be creatively brought back to life in soups, casseroles, sauces, or stock.
The Community Nutrition & Dietetic Service, HSE West, offers a free health service called Supermarket Nutrition Tours. This involves a qualified nutritionist/dietician accompanying you through the aisles of a supermarket, and giving you the opportunity to learn about reading food labels and the nutritional information of the foods you buy. For more information, contact the Community Nutrition & Dietetic Service, HSE West, on 091 548335.
