Budgeting - Ways to save on your shopping bill!

Preparing healthy meals for your family should not be expensive. There are endless list of healthy foods combinations that you can prepare even on a tight budget – you just have to be wise in spending your money on the right food, at the right time, by using the right appliances at home. There are several ways on how you can save money from your weekly or everyday shopping for food.

The following article will guide you on how to maximize your budget without sacrificing the quality and health benefits of the food you eat. Here are some key points to remember:

• Buy foods that are in season. Look for fruits and vegetables that are in season as they come in affordable prices.  You can also buy them in bulk and save some for the next days when they are no longer in season. You can buy unripe fruits and let them ripen on your kitchen until they are ready to be eaten. You just have to ensure that you have the basic idea on how to properly store them without spoiling them immediately.  

• Shop around for fruit bargains and buy in bulk. If you shop around you can buy fruit at a discounted price. I usually buy whole pineapples and Mangos which I then slice up and place into freezer bags to  freeze. I also freeze my grapes, raspberries, strawberries,  spinach and kale which I then use for my fruit smoothes, it's so much more cost effective and less time consuming when preparing your smoothes.

• Look for the labels. Make sure you examine the labels of the food, especially the ‘best before’ dates. Do not buy foods that are nearly expired if you do not plan to consume them immediately.  However, If you do then why not freeze them.  This will ensure they last longer.

• Proper storing and preservation. Just like cooking properly, you should have the basic knowledge on how to preserve food and make them last longer. Among the best preservatives are sugar, salt, vinegar, and soy sauce. For fruits, some people store root crops in sand to make them last longer. Paper bags are good to store onions and garlic. Maximize the use of your freezer and refrigerators for meat, fish, and vegetables.

• Growing your own greens. There are green veggies that you can grow in your own yard or small pots at home. These include basil, celery, lettuce, onion, and some other green herbs. You can have your own herbs and spices fresh anytime. They are also good insect repellents.

• Using proper food storage. Use glass containers instead of plastic. Glass containers are reusable and they keep your food fresh.

• Recycling. You can save a lot of money when you know how to recycle. Foods that are nearly expiration like milk can be frozen along with some flavours to make smoothies and coffee condiments.

There are lots of ways to save on your shopping, as long as you know what to buy, where to buy and how much to buy. Cook what is only needed to avoid food wastage you can also use the shopping and meal  planner templates from our online course, these templates  will help you to organise what you are cooking and what ingredients you need to buy, to avoid spending money on food you may not use. Learn how to recycle and make use of leftovers, like maybe freezing it or get creative and use leftovers to make another meal. Remember, it  takes practicality to save a penny.