Cost of groceries
Posted by: Kezzaj
6th May 2023 05:11pm
What are you doing to cope with the rising cost of groceries? Switching to supermarket own brands or home brands? Only buying fruit and vegetables in season?
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Comments 8
jjdrer
I stick to basic everyday food shopping. I try the store brand food and if I like it that is the brand to stick to when it is the cheapest. Even today compared to prices on basic items I bought some have increased in price compared to a fortnight ago. I item jumped $1.50. Eggs have jumped over $1.50 per dozen. I shop according to the specials - I write a list of them and other food I have run out of. I plan my meals after I have done my shopping - not before.
Kiki Chiki
My biggest tip here is to find out when the stores near you get their weekly delivery of food and when they do their specials. I regularly get meat fish BBC bakery and produce at 70 to 90% off if I go at the right time, if I'm not fussy and if I eat according to my shop and not by my tastebuds. We plan meals along what will go off first and what we have the most of etc. I've also been baking from scratch more rather than buying packaged treats etc
Kiki Chiki
Forgot to mention the clearance items are usually done the night before they get their delivery but it can vary by store
Kiki Chiki
No idea where that BBC word came from... Phone typing haha!
kidwithsmurf
Rising cost of groceries is very hard to deal with as everything is rising exorbitantly. A few things I do to combat spending too much is only buy what you need and will use. Brands don't matter when it comes to price because major supermarkets always have specials on everything which seems to happen in cycles. Thus, wait for what you normally buy to hit it's sale cycle and stock up. That way you should have enough to last you until the next cycle or further. It also pays to check the price tag. Most stores will tell you what you are saving and how much per 100g something is. If a product is on sale it doesn't always mean it's cheaper per 100g. Therefore, it's always best to buy what is cheapest per 100g regardless of specials and only buy the cheapest of what you will actually use.
Other tips is to shop once a week and make a weekly food list. This way you are only buying exactly what you require and have less chance to over spend or buy things you do not need. This will mean less random items, less random expenses you didn't need and less waste.
Another easy tip is to shop at smaller stores for groceries. These smaller stores may have cheaper prices because their pricing isn't set by a standard. For example Coles and Woolworths set their prices based on what their rival stores do to be competitive. Independent grocery stores set their prices based on what they need to survive. So if you use a small independent green grocer and or markets to buy your fresh produce you will save a lot more money wise. Yes, it's not as convenient but it's cheaper and worth the extra time to travel to these stores/markets.
Also, if a store has a free rewards card/loyalty card or member card... always signup as this will allow you to get the best deals always. Without them these days, you are basically paying more by default because you were too lazy to signup or check if the store had one. Plus, if you are going to regularly shop at a certain store why not be a free member to get some kind of benefits for shopping there?
jtmorri
I have been buying many supermarket home brands for many years and generally buy in season fruit and vegetables as a rule. I am buying what I need. I am not doing anything differently and I am not cutting back but as we know it is costing more.
kellie84
Having to only buy things when they are on special, struggling to be able to afford Fresh Produce and meat. It has gotten to a point where the cost of living is so bad that with the strain of inflation I have even had to resort to getting help from the charities in order to afford the food that I need to survive
Tragk
We've been only buying home brand for years so it's not really any different than usual, but yeah, we stick to seasonal fruit. I also walk to Coles every other day around lunchtime or in the afternoons to see if they've got meat on sale.
If you time it right, you can get some really cheap food, and if you're not too fussy e.g you can handle spicy stuff, game meat etc. then it's pretty easy to feed two people on a limited budget.
Although we also do online survey sites to help get Coles/Woolies vouchers, so that saves a bit of cash, and I have an online hobby that acts as passive income which brings in extra money for food.