Frugal food, it’s a concept that we’ve been thinking about a lot at moneymagpie. We’ve recently launched our Freeganism campaign which focuses on food waste and food poverty. More and more, we are seeing the negative impact the rising cost of living is having. So we have been thinking about living a bit more frugally. That’s why on Friday 25th February at 12:30 pm CEO Jasmine will be going live on Instagram to discuss frugal food. She’ll be joined by SORTEDfoods, Ben Ebbrell to discuss how to eat for cheap. Ben is SORTEDfoods on-screen chef who is dedicated to making delicious food available to everyone.
Ahead of the live we’ve rounded up some of our favourite money-saving tips to eat more frugally.
- Don’t shop when you’re hungry
- Do you really need the brands?
- Meal-plan ahead of time
- Shop later in the day
- Get a loyalty card
- Become friends with your freezer
Don’t Shop When You’re Hungry
We’ve all gone shopping when we’re hungry before and ended up filling our baskets with sweet treats from the in-store bakery. It’s not only bad for our wallets but it can also cause unnecessary food waste as we are less likely to eat the food we needed. Try to have a quick snack pre-shopping or go after you’ve eaten, you’re meal to avoid the temptation of filling your basket with snacks.
Do you really need the brands?
Branded items often come with a large mark-up compared to those supermarket own brands. Try switching out your branded biscuits and beans for a supermarket own brand. It’s amazing how quickly you’ll see the savings add up.
Meal-plan ahead of time
I often feel overwhelmed when I go to the shops without a list, it is like I’ve suddenly forgotten how to put together meals. Instead, I chose to plan ahead of time, this allows me to check my cupboards to see what I have to use up. It also means I can see if I need to stock up on any basics like pasta or frozen veg.
Shop later in the day
If you shop later in the day, you’re more likely to come across yellow sticker discounts. If it’s something you know you’ll eat that day or something that can be put in the freezer, pick it up if you can afford it. Even better if it’s something that’s already on your shopping list for the week.
Get a loyalty card
Loyalty cards are a great way to save money on your shopping. You don’t pay more for your shopping and in some places, you even get big discounts. Tesco’s Clubcard can grant you massive discounts in-store as well as allow you to save up points. The nectar card is another great option when it comes to points cards, you can collect and spend points with loads of great partner companies.
Become friends with your freezer
Your freezer is your best friend when it comes to saving money whilst shopping. It means you can bulk buy frozen produce to keep you going for a long time. You can also use it to store batch cooked meals if you have to use up some food from your fridge.
For even more tips and advice come to our Instagram live about frugal food on Friday 25th February at 12:30 pm. Head over to @jasminebirtles on Instagram to join in on the fun!
On 30th April I received notice of your event on 12th February! Not very helpful!