Food prices stressing you out? How to save money at the supermarket

Food prices in New Zealand rose 4.5% in a year, with beef mince surging by 23.2%, making staples noticeably pricier. Photo / 123RF

By Lucy Corry of RNZ

Does it sting every time you go to the supermarket? It’s not your imagination. Food prices have gone up 4.5% in the year to February, with beef mince up a whopping 23.2% to $24.46 per kilogram.

Fruit and veges also shot up by 9.4%, and meat, poultry and fish have gone up 7.5% annually.

With the Middle East conflict driving up the cost of freight and fuel further, prices aren’t going down any time soon. Here are 10 lessons we’ve learned about saving cash on food.

Generic brands are your budget friend

Generic home brand items will do the trick in most cases, says nutritionist Amanda Brien. She says University of Auckland researchers found generic products to be significantly cheaper but very similar in nutritional content to fancy ones.

Use Uber Eats for inspiration, not delivery

While she was flatting with students who “ate like horses”, Jordyn Hammond developed a knack for meal planning on a low budget.

She shared a series of tips and tricks with the RNZ Thrift podcast, including using Uber Eats as inspiration, then working out how to make the same dish on the cheap.

If that feels like too much work, Hammond always buys milk and bread “because then you can make toasted sandwiches, you can have a coffee”.

Using Uber Eats as inspiration instead of ordering can help recreate meals at a fraction of the cost. Photo / 123RF

You really can grow veges yourself

If four Dunedin students can grow their own veges with no knowledge other than what they gained from watching a gardening TV show, you probably can too.

They turned repurposed drawers into raised garden beds, spent $20 on soil and bought seeds for about a dollar a packet.

“We ​went ​down ​to ​the ​hospice ​shop ​and ​bought ​these ​big ​drawers ​for ​$2 ​a ​piece."

This crew also go hunting and fishing ... but that might be a bridge too far for some households.

Be wise to supermarket sales strategies

Consumer behavourist and University of Canterbury professor of marketing Ekant Veer says supermarkets rely on heuristics (mental shortcuts for making quick decisions) to get you to spend more. Here’s how to beat them:

• If you can, leave the kids at home so you don’t succumb to pester power.
• Take time to compare prices – be aware that cheaper items are likely to be on higher or lower shelves.
• Try to ignore end-of-aisle displays – they might not be the bargain that the supermarket wants you to think they are.
• Don’t shop while hungry or angry – you’ll be more likely to feel you “need a little treat” – like some chocolate, chips or alcohol – at the end.

Shopping while hungry or with children can lead to impulse spending and unnecessary extras. Photo / 123RF

Make instant noodles better for you

Instant noodles are cheap and handy, but not particularly sustaining. A bunch of Australian food experts have shared ways to make them healthier, including adding vegetables (toss in a handful of frozen peas, spinach, broccoli, carrots or whatever’s on hand to bump up fibre, vitamins and texture), including protein (boiled or fried eggs, tofu cubes, edamame beans, shredded chicken or tinned beans) and using half or less of the high-salt flavour sachet or mixing in low-sodium stock, garlic, ginger, herbs or chilli instead).

Save on garlic and onions

Asafoetida, also known as hing, is a pungent gum resin from fennel that’s found in many Indian and some Middle Eastern dishes in place of garlic (and sometimes onions). It’s not a direct swap, but it’s worth considering if you want a budget-friendly flavour boost. Chef Chetan Pangam and food writer Perzen Patel explain more here.

Beat the grind of leftovers

Dunedin student Renata Herrera Rojas, author of The Beginner’s Guide to Nourishment, recommends making a big meal and splitting it up into portions to freeze, defrosting one when you need it, so nothing is wasted. That way you’re not eating the same thing for nights on end.

Instant noodles can be made healthier and more filling by adding vegetables, protein and less seasoning. Photo / 123RF

Make mince go further

Content creator Alice Taylor, who runs a popular Instagram page with a focus on cheap and realistic cooking, says you can use lentils, beans, or vegetables to stretch mince-based meals.

“A great example would be to use half dried lentils and half mince in a cottage pie for example, or make spring rolls with just a little bit of mince, but adding lots of grated carrot and onion, making it go further.”

Buy in bulk when you can

The Bowling Club in Dunedin is a community eatery serving mains for between $4 and $8. Founders Liam Arthur and Jackie Bannon reckon bulk buying is one of the keys to saving money on kai.

When there’s a glut of something, he buys big, often going direct to growers.

“That’s where a lot of the canola oil is made. That’s where beans and lentils are grown. Just finding out who’s grown those things and buying from them in bulk [can help save money].”

– RNZ