We all need to eat, and food shopping can take a considerable chunck of your paycheck, especially if you are also trying to eat healthy and sustainably; when looking for ways to save money when shopping for food, the last thing you want to do is to buy something, forget it in the fridge and then have to throw it away. Food waste is a huge problem worldwide (an average household in the UK, for instance, throw away £600 worth of food every year!); but we all can, and must, do our part in fighting against it every time we go to the shop or market.

Here are 6 tips to help you get the most from your grocery shopping while being sustainable (and without breaking the bank!)

• Check what you have in your cupboards and fridge/freezer, and make a grocery list; at the store, save time and money by buying only the items on the list. Remember that a lot of food can be eaten safely after the expiration date printed on the packaging – check if the food is still good (look and smell) before throwing it away.
• Choose in-season fruit and vegetables: it’s usually cheaper, and tastier
• Swap prepared food, salads and cut fruit for the loose fresh alternatives…they’ll be cheaper, and you’ll also eat healthier and fresher!
• Buy in bulk food which can be freezed: family sizes are usually cheaper, and stores often offer discounts based on quantity. Keep an eye on special offers at your local grocery shop, but always double check the quality of the food, especially when buying fresh food.
• When shopping at the supermarket, look out for own-brand products – they are usually as good as more expensive brands, and they cost less only because their packaging is less enticing.
• Make weekly meal plans: cooking everyday can be time consuming…its not easy to start making tasty foods from scratch after a full day at work. But if you learn to plan your meals in advance, you can dedicate perhaps one day to batch cook everything you’ll eat during the week. You will be less tempted to call that tasty takeaway, and buying only what you intend to cook will make you save money in your weekly grocery shopping…And that works particularly well when you also…

BONUS TIP: learn how to freeze all kind of food.

It takes a good amount of research because different foods have different rules when it comes to preservation, and you need to adhere strictly to the instructions to avoid growing (possibly very dangerous) bacteria in your food. But I’ve learned to freeze all kind of food (from potatoes to home-made lasagna) and haven’t got any stomachache yet, and anytime I fancy any of that I just need to pop it into the oven or frying pan and voila…dinner is served!

Becoming less wasteful and more environmentally conscious will require most of us to change a lot of our habits and routine. For example, at the beginning you might think that spending your Sunday afternoon freezing two kilos of potatoes is too boring and time consuming.

The secret is to develop a routine which will fit with your lifestyle, to make sure that the additional time you spend in what look like tedious activities will be gained back (often with interests!) in the near future. And you can make these activities less boring by putting some good music on, or watching your favourite tv show while doing them.

Freezing some of your veggies, for instance, when done on large quantities per batch, will provide you with healthier and tastier portions ready to be cooked when you need them. It can also help planning your meals in advance, and you can bulk buy fresh food without the risk of it going spoiled. That will save you some money (and time, as you will need to go to the supermarket less frequently). And your home-frozen chips will always taste better than the ones you can buy in the stores.

Do you have other tips you’d like to share? Feel free to add a comment below…