Eat better, pay less: Less money spent, and much healthier food

Does the price of healthy food seem prohibitive to you? The Herald on Sunday has partnered with Pak'nSave and the Heart Foundation to see if it is still possible to eat good, nutritious food while also saving money. This week: In the last of our three-part series, we follow up with the three households who took part to find out if they managed to eat better and save money.

Massey's Siobhan Kelly and Luke O'Sullivan with their son, Elvis, 2.

Siobhan Kelly, Luke O'Sullivan and their son, 2-year-old Elvis O'Sullivan, live in Massey, West Auckland. They are a one-income household - O'Sullivan is a builder and Kelly is a busy mum. O'Sullivan's son, Aaron, 16, also lives with them some of the time.

Since her consultations with Angela Berrill, the Heart Foundation's national nutrition adviser and registered dietitian, Kelly is meeting her $180 budget every week.

"I've noticed we're on budget pretty much every week now, and that's getting some small luxuries in there as well. I think the reason is we're using more legumes and less meat.

"That changeover has been fantastic. I'm enjoying it more, I know my partner's enjoying it more, and we're having a couple of meat-free days a week, which was something we always wanted to do for the environmental factor of it all. So we're pretty happy with how it has gone.

"The cost of each meal has gone down a lot," Kelly says.

Berrill encouraged them to buy canned legumes to save money on meat and to get vegetable protein instead. "They're enjoying recipes like Israeli Shakshuka made with lentils, eggs and a bit of salami," she says.

"It's definitely a favourite because it's really quick to put together," Kelly says.

She's making her own hummus, and Elvis is eating it too. Berrill says giving kids hummus to dip vege sticks in is a great way to get them to eat more vegetables and legumes.

"I never realised how sweet the store-bought hummus was until I tried making it myself.

"Our little guy loves it, he's started dipping his carrots into it," Kelly says.

To begin with, she found it challenging to adjust her family's portion sizes - particularly in terms of how much meat she needed.

And it was a little challenging to find recipes that all three enjoyed.

But now Kelly has found the right dishes, she is confident the changes they've made will stick.

"Overall, the changes have been so easy to integrate on a weekly shopping basis and cooking every night.

"That little bit of extra knowledge has made it a whole lot easier to stay on budget and know that my family is eating really good food," she says.

"We've cut down on dried fruit, because of the sugar - particularly for Elvis.

"But we all love fruit, so we're still buying fresh fruit. Sometimes, all Elvis wants to eat is a banana or a mandarin.

"We've been using more canned fruit, because it lasts longer. If I can't find it in juice, I buy it in syrup but rinse the syrup off - which was something Angela suggested.

"Overall, I find I've been buying more canned goods and frozen veges, which means I'm wasting less fresh produce."

Berrill says once these things have been put into practice for about three months, they tend to become lifelong habits.

"When people can see the cost savings and how much healthy food they can get for their money by making some small changes, it's a big motivator," she says.

Kelly has since managed to reduce her grocery bill even further, to $150 a week on occasion.

Hamilton family of three Kaitlyn, Lachlan and Theresa Lynch.

Theresa Lynch lives in Hamilton with her two children, Kaitlyn, 15, and Lachlan, 9. Theresa works part-time. Her children live nine nights in a fortnight with her and five nights with their father.

She shops fortnightly on the week the kids are due.

"I found Angela quite helpful. She sent me a heap of recipes from the Heart Foundation. I've got some ideas out of it, and learned more about where I'm going wrong a little bit.

"When you're a chip lover, you have to buy those chips. I managed to stop buying them for a while, but they've crept back in. I still have them. Chips and dip are our downfall. It's an after-dinner thing for us. It's hard to change your habits," Lynch says.

Berrill agrees making changes can take time.

"Theresa was really hard on herself when I followed up with her. She'd had a busy couple of weeks and didn't feel she'd made much progress with the suggestions I'd given her. Life gets in the way sometimes - and that's totally fine.

"I actually thought she'd done really well. She'd managed to make some fantastic changes, such as encouraging her daughter Kaitlyn to have smoothies for breakfast, rather than going without. Theresa was also willing to try healthy snacks like carrots and hummus for the kids.

"It may take Theresa a while to implement some of the changes, but she'll get there.

"The main thing is, she's had the conversations about healthy eating with the kids, and got them interested and involved in cooking, which is fantastic.

"For many busy parents, their own nutrition is the bottom priority. They're focused on ensuring their children eat well and not so worried about their own meals.

"Time can be a big factor. Theresa and I talked about making extra food so she has leftovers she can eat for lunch, or for dinner when the kids aren't there," Berrill says.

Lynch is making progress.

"I've started making something for dinner when the kids aren't there, rather than sitting down and eating potato chips. It may just be eggs on toast or beans on toast, but it's something. Still nothing like what I'd cook if the kids were home.

"I know I need to buy more fruit and vegetables - but they're just so expensive. I have switched to frozen broccoli and cauliflower, which is something I wouldn't have normally done - that was Angela's suggestion.

"I haven't seen the savings yet, but I think it will probably play out over time. I am on a very tight budget, and I probably spend less than I should on food. I try not to spend any more than $150 a fortnight. I still have to go and get milk and a few bits, so I might spend $30-$50 on the other week."

Rangiora couple Brian and Meagen Penney.

Meagen and Brian Penney live just outside Rangiora near Christchurch on a 10-acre property, with their dog Molly and cat Roxy. Meagen is a sales rep and Brian is semi-retired.

"Some of the things Angela suggested, we were already doing. She suggested steaming and stir-frying as healthy ways of cooking, rather than cooking things in sauces - but we were already doing a lot of that.

"Overall, I found Angela's advice really helpful. She suggested looking at the Heart Foundation website. I had a look at the recipes and have downloaded some to try.

"And it's a matter of reading labels when I do the shopping. I usually want to get in and out of the supermarket as fast as I can, I don't want to be messing about.

"Angela also suggested looking at the house brand or budget stuff. It makes sense if you can get it cheaper.

"We've cut down on the meat we eat, we've added fish in a couple of times a week, and more soups. In summer, it'll be more salads.

"I've also bought some budget brand products to try, to see if we like them. Hopefully we can save some money that way."

Smoothies are a new healthy breakfast option. At lunchtime, Meagen Penney is out on the road a lot for work and will often make something to take with her.

Berrill says she is making quite healthy choices. "Even if she has to eat out at lunchtime. She'll choose a salad or a wrap, which is great."

Reducing the number of treats the couple buy will be an ongoing challenge. Meagen Penney is trying to gradually swap out potato chips for things like popcorn, frittatas, smoothies or celery and carrot sticks.

"It's something we've got to keep working at and just think outside the square," she says. "We have been doing better with chips. I've got him eating hummus instead of dips. You can't change everything in five minutes, it all has to take time."

Top tips for healthier eating - and saving money

• Plan your meals

When you plan your meals ahead for the week it gives more control over healthy choices and lets you save money because you're not having to buy something on the way home from work - or succumbing to takeaways.

• Read labels

Look for the sugar, sodium and saturated fat content. Remember to read the per 100g column, because serving sizes vary between products. Ingredients are listed from greatest to least quantity in the food. For peanut butter, the first ingredient should be peanuts.

• Less is best

When it comes to the three S's - Sugar, Sodium and Saturated fat - less is best in each 100g.

• Eat more legumes

The Heart Foundation recommends adults eat legumes four to five times a week. Replacing some meat in our diets for plant-based protein can be healthier, more affordable and better for the environment, too.

• Make hummus

When it's home made, you know what's in it. Go to the Heart Foundation website for a recipe. Serve with vege sticks - it's a great way to eat legumes and vegetables.

• Follow the 40 per cent rule

At the supermarket, make sure 40 per cent of what's in your trolley is fruit and non-starchy vegetables.

• Buy seasonal produce

It will save you money. Purchasing fruit and veges out of season is often more expensive.

• Buy frozen and canned

Frozen and canned foods are often just as nutritious as fresh, and they are usually cheaper. They are also a good, option when an ingredient is out of season or unavailable.

• Get creative with leftovers

Do you throw away fruit and vegetables each week? Find a way to use up fresh produce you have left, from root to stem, before it deteriorates. Use dinner leftovers as your starting point for tomorrow's lunch.

• Watch portion sizes

You may find you can stretch a dish's protein for several meals. The Heart Foundation has created recommended portion sizes to make this easier for you and your family.

• Cook from scratch

When you cook from scratch, using whole-food ingredients, you not only control what you are eating, but it's also often cheaper.
Angela Berrill.

• Go to: heartfoundation.org.nz/wellbeing/healthy-recipes/

WIN

The Herald on Sunday has another $200 Pak'nSave gift card to give away this week. To enter, email your details to news@heraldonsunday.co.nz, with the subject line "supermarkets", by 5pm, Wednesday, September 13.