The most up to date government report on the average cost spent per person per week was released in 2022. The report shows the average person spends £41.11 on food and drink on a weekly basis. That’s the equivalent of over £2000 per year per person.
With the cost-of-living crisis and the constant rise in bills and daily living, learning to eat healthy and nutritious meals for less can be a great way to save money whilst not sacrificing good nutrition and a healthy lifestyle.
Plan Your Meals
Writing out a weekly plan of your meals helps to save money, reduce waste and make healthier choices. Taking time to think about what you’re going to eat encourages a more balanced diet, helps to avoid impulse buying as you know exactly what you need and reduces money and food being wasted unnecessarily at the end of the week. You can use a weekly planner to write down meals including breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks. Check what you have in the cupboards already, so you use existing items before adding new ones to your shopping list.
Be Cost Effective
Being smart with not only the ingredients you buy but also where you buy them from is important. Buying products in bulk is often cheaper and this can be great for things like rice, pasta and oats.
Own brand products are usually just as good as named brands but much cheaper and more cost eff ective. If you’re not sure, then compare the ingredients to see any differences. Knowing which fruit and vegetables are in season is also a good way to eat healthily whilst on a budget. Ingredients that aren’t in season are more expensive to buy because of limited supply and due to importation.
Price Match
Make sure you’re shopping for items at the most cost-effective places. It could mean shopping at multiple shops to get the best prices but it may be worth it. Large stores will now price match each other on many staple items but not for others so shopping around can help. There are also many online shopping sites now such as Amazon Fresh or Ocado that may off er cheaper prices; however, delivery costs should be considered.
Home Cooking
Cooking at home is not only better for your budget but also allows you to control what goes into your meals. Along with getting to pick your own ingredients you can also control your portion size and know you’re having a healthy meal without breaking the bank.
Grow Your Own Vegetables
Growing your own produce is an amazing way to save money and significantly reduces grocery bills. Homegrown produce is much fresher and packed with lots more nutrients and is highly sustainable. Growing produce can take time and effort but in the long term is worth it for both health and budget. You can grow vegetables, fruits and herbs.
Some easy low maintenance vegetables to grow in the UK are:
- Courgettes + Squashes: Plant young plants into well prepared ground in May and pick them regularly.
- Beetroot: Seeds should be sown 5cm apart from late April – July. You can pick beetroots when they are half grown, called baby beets, and use them in salads or leave them to reach full maturity.
- Carrots: Carrots love dark and deep containers or garden beds.
- Potatoes: You can grow potatoes in an old compost bag or in large pots. Put some compost in the bag or pot, place in the seeds and cover with another compost layer, water and watch them grow.
Reduce Food Waste
Budget Friendly Recipes
Eat what you buy. Having food left over at the end of the week is money wasted and this can be avoided with meal planning and good storage.
Keep anything perishable in the fridge and in airtight containers to make it last for as long as possible. Try to buy foods with longer ‘use by’ dates to make sure you have enough time to eat them. The date labelled ‘Best Before’ is about the quality of the food and ‘Use By’ is about safety to eat. Use your leftovers to add to new meals and if you’ve made too much then freeze a portion or two for later in the week.
Some examples of how leftovers can be used are:
- Chicken / Meat: Make sandwiches, soups or salads
- Vegetable peelings/scraps: Use to make vegetable stock
- Bread: Create croutons or breadcrumbs
Soups: These are great for using up leftover vegetables and meats from previous meals. They’re easy to make and are also great for hydration because of the high-water content.
Omelettes: Great for using up eggs, vegetables, cheese and meats and they take very little planning, prep and cooking time.
Homemade Pizza: These are great, especially if you have kids. You can use wholemeal pitta bread, some tomato paste, and a selection of veg, meats and cheese to your liking.
One-Pot meals: Meals like curries and chilli con carne are simple to make with spices, canned foods and meats of your choice. They’re also great for batch cooking and freezing for future use.
Resources
There are so many websites online that have great ideas if you’re stuck for meals to eat. BBC Good Food, Tesco Real Food, Jamie Oliver and many more have spaces on their websites dedicated to eating on a budget so use the resources available.
The PDF version of this article, downloadable here, includes a printable weekly meal planner.
