Since pandemic supermarket prices hit fever pitch, a staggering 4% annual grocery price hike¹ has made food shopping on a budget a bigger challenge for more Aussies and Kiwis than ever before.
It’s no surprise that 42% of Aussie and Kiwi families surveyed this year² said they want to reduce what they spend on groceries to ease cost of living pressures. Or that an overwhelming 72% said they wish they could spend less money on food but still be able to have healthy and delicious meals. And for families with kids under five, that was a resounding 82%.
As well as partnering with OzHarvest to make a difference to those hurting the most, and sharing all the life-long savings you can make with a Thermomix® in your kitchen, we got to work on finding more ways to help Aussies and Kiwis. Here are our top six ways to get groceries on a budget and win the cost-of-living battle while still enjoying healthy and delicious meals every day.
Ugly veg makes beautifully cheap food.
Saving money and food waste, the ugly veg movement is growing. The oversized, undersized, blemished and bendy may be lacking perfect looks, but they pack the same taste and nutritional value for less cost.
And as more savvy shoppers are embracing the ugly for food shopping on a budget, more options for buying these inexpensive groceries are cropping up online, as well as in supermarkets, like Woolies’ Odd Bunch and Coles’ I’mPerfect ranges. You can easily swap your fruit and veg for Odd Bunch options in the Woolies app when you upload your Cookidoo meals to generate your shopping list.
With subscription services like Farmers Box, Wonky Box and Oddboxes, and apps like Gander and Foody Bag, you can grab up to 30 per cent discounts on groceries and save heaps of perfectly good food from landfill too.
Once you’ve bagged a bargain, you can easily find the best use for your produce by searching recipes in Cookidoo® by ingredient. Take broccoli for example, serving up more than 100 recipes for you filter and choose from.
Eating less meat is a big slice off your grocery bill
For meat lovers, giving up a little can save a lot. And it doesn’t mean going vegan.
Just by cooking four or more cheap meatless meals using lower-cost sources of protein such as beans, lentils, tofu and nuts, an average meat-eating family of four can cut their cost of living by as much as AU$70 per week⁴.
And when you do buy meat, you can easily turn one meal into two by bulking out family favourites like bolognaise and stews with vegetables and healthy carbohydrates.
Thermomix® makes it easy to find the tastiest, cheap meatless recipes to try. Here’s a few of our top-rated faves to get you started.
Farm-direct discounts on groceries
The cost of all fresh produce has mushroomed since those outlandish lettuce prices we saw in 2021! But you can easily go fresh grocery shopping on a budget and save up to 40% on your fruit and veg by buying in-season produce directly from local farmers, community food enterprises and online food co-operatives.
Jump on the nationwide Open Food Network and you can take a virtual drive to the farm gate to pick your own for less online.
Pick up produce boxes from as little as NZD $15 from Hapori Fruit and Veg Box.
It’s even possible to get pricier healthy sustainable pantry items at almost wholesale prices with online stores like Binn Inn.
Try these cost-of-living winning seasonal recipes to batch cook and store.
Winter
Summer
Shop around the aisles
It’s easy to switch to autopilot when you walk into any supermarket, but you’ll be surprised how much you can save by mindfully sticking to the outer edges of the store. Here you’ll find all the essential fresh produce you need and none of the pricey processed foods that you don’t. Just make a couple of detours to the canned veggies, rice, tea and coffee aisles.
Beat the cravings and cost of living
Steer your trolley clear of the lolly, biscuit and savoury snack aisles where your costs can really stack up with impulse buys. You can easily (and cheaply) make your own healthier treats at home with these price and craving beating recipes.
Save with grocery price comparison apps
Grocery price comparison apps can save you hours poring over supermarket catalogues and websites to do your food shopping on a budget. With just a few taps these apps will take your shopping list, scan stores for the latest product pricing info, and tell you exactly where and when to shop to bag anything up to 40% discounts on groceries and other goods.
Food shopping price comparison app UpUp for Apple and Android scans the big two supermarkets so you can split your shop between Coles and Woolies, or opt for the one that offers a better price on groceries that day.
BuyWisely tracks millions of products across a huge range of e-commerce websites, including supermarkets and major retailers from Amazon to eBay.
And WiseList lets you compare prices at grocery stores and access exclusive deals on everything from insurance to loans, energy, and more.
The savings start in your kitchen. Up to NZ$236 per month.
Got a Thermomix® on your kitchen bench? The more you use it, the more you’ll save. In fact, here’s what our latest deep dive into research shows.
The average Australian could save $100.04 on grocery shopping a month if they owned and used a Thermomix® to make healthy, easy, cheap food from scratch. A monthly saving of $92.85 for Kiwis.
Add takeaway, dining out, morning coffee and afternoon slump treats on the go, and the average household could be saving up to NZ$236 on total food bills every month.
Use our simple online savings calculator to see how much you can chop off the cost of living and win the ‘food shopping on a budget’ battle with a Thermomix® in your kitchen.
CALCULATE YOUR SAVINGS!
"I’m cooking a bigger variety of food I wouldn’t usually cook if I didn’t have the Thermomix. Spending less time cooking in the kitchen and more time with my kids. Saving money being able to make staples like bread and yogurt.” – Rhesa M, Thermomix® Customer.
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¹Results from the ongoing ACCC supermarkets inquiry 2024-25.
²Based on data from Australia and New Zealand-wide surveys conducted by Painted Dog Research in February 2024.
³Based on a 2021 study from Oxford University.
⁴Research conducted by professor Karen Charlton, a dietitian from the University of Wollongong (May 2022).
*Our price comparisons are based on the full advertised prices at a major supermarket or comparable "takeaway" products from a number of food outlets or national franchises as at 28 March 2024. Prices listed exclude common pantry items. Prices are only for indicative comparison, and do not represent actual savings. Prices do not account for sales or promotions and may vary according to location, date, and other factors.