DOES your jaw hit the floor whenever you look at the receipt for your weekly supermarket shop?
It might be time to try dad-of-three David Shukri’s “capsule food shop” trick then. He’s invented a clever way of keeping costs down – and it could help you save you hundreds of pounds a year.
Its a tale all to familiar for many, food inflation hit 3.9% year on year in January, according to the latest data from the Office of National Statistics.
According to analysis by Nimblefins the average UK household now spends £3,877 a year on groceries.
David, 47, a British commercial insights and strategy leader who now lives in Australia, – alongside wife Holly – were also concerned about rising food bills, and started digging into ways to save on their shopping.
Sitting down together one evening, the pair decided to trawl through old receipts, desperately searching for signs of where they may be overspending.
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They discovered little impulse buys and convenience foods were driving up their bill – as well as the unnecessary mid-week top-up shops they were making.
David was shocked. Even with over 20 years in the supermarket industry working in strategy and research, he could still be duped into spending more than necessary.
He also runs a blog and YouTube channel under the name of “Grocery Dad,” sharing tips on how to save with followers.
It is here that his savvy shopping method was born. Mentioning in one of his earlier videos that households probably only need 20 items in your food shop.
A viewer shared they would love to know what those foods actually were – sparking inspiration.
To begin with, David scoured his cupboards to see what food items were necessary – eaten regularly by his family as part of proper meals, and not just treats.
He gathered a list of 20 groceries that he knew would feed his family for the whole week.
What’s on David’s capsule food shopping list
- Olive oil
- Onions
- Garlic
- Whole chicken
- Ground beef / Beef mince
- Beans/Lentils
- Eggs
- Canned Fish
- Salt
- Pasta
- Brown Rice
- Flour
- Veggies (as many as you like!)
- Frozen veg
- Canned tomatoes
- Milk
- Butter
- Cheese
- Peanut butter
- Fruit (as many as you like!)
David’s idea is that you buy fresh ingredients for meals rather than packets of food – a method he likes to call plan, shop, cook.
“This is basically the blueprint you need to take control of your food spending before, during and after your trip to the supermarket,” he says.
“The 20 essentials are kind of like the bedrock to the whole thing – get that right and you’re well on your way to success.
“That’s that’s how you avoid as many of the top ups as possible,” he added.
The method worked, and David swears by it, using it every week.
He estimates he has saved $1,200 (£625.96) a year just on groceries.
The capsule shopping method means they no longer fritter away money on takeaways and eating out – saving them another $1,300 (£678.12) a year.
In total, that’s a yearly saving of about $2,500 (£1,300).
The Sun has crunched the numbers to find out how much his method would save YOU on your shopping over in the UK.
The average cost of items on his list would cost you just £30.91 at Tesco, one of the most popular supermarkets in the UK.
That’s a total grocery bill of just £1,607.32 a year – which is £2,268.68 less than what the average UK household now pays each year, according to data from Nimblefins.
David said this 20-item list doesn’t need to be dogmatic; you can swap things out if they are cheaper.
‘I tried 6-1 the 6-1 food shopping method – it slashed my grocery bill in half, I’ll keep using it to save £1,152 a year’
SIMPLIFYING your food shop and stripping it back to basics can really help you save at the till.
I was fed up of seeing the cost of my weekly shop continue to rise as food prices soar, and feeling like most of my money is lining the pockets of my local Asda instead.
So I decided to take action and trawled TikTok for money-saving inspiration – which is when I came across the 6-1 shopping method.
This is a hack that American chef Will Coleman raves about on TikTok, and it’s slowly making it’s way over the pond to shoppers here.
It involves buying six vegetables, five fruits, four proteins, three starches, two sauces/spreads, and one treat to create a week’s worth of meals.
Knowing that I was limited to a number of items in each category helped me shop more intentionally.
Beforehand, I also prepared a list of items I need for recipes during the week.
I aimed to get starches that we could both use for meals during the week to save on costs and enjoy some meals together.
I spent less than 30 minutes in the supermarket, which was a record time for me. The 6-1 method helped me avoid the dessert aisle and other distractions which are always a killer for my wallet.
I picked up a total of 21 items which came to £35.83, which was £32 less than what I had spent the week previously (£67).
But be warned… the hack doesn’t include any allocation for dairy, tea or coffee – so cheese lovers and those who love a morning cuppa may struggle.
There’s also no allocation for booze – so you’d have to make the impossible decision of whether to pick wine over chocolate for your treat.
But in my opinion, the savings outweigh the sacrifices. If I decided to stick to the 6-1 method every week for the rest of the year, I would be on track to save a huge £1,536 a year.
Going forward, I could see myself using the trend for three weekly shops out of the month, using the fourth to stock up on other essentials and treats.
This would still save me £1,152. – I can’t wait to see the savings stack up.
READ THE FULL STORY HERE.
So how does David manage keeping away from the frozen pizza aisle? He says his ethos of “cooking once and eating twice” helps.
“If you are cooking something today, think about what that could be in two or three days,” he says.
For example, he said that if you are eating mashed potatoes on Monday, turn the leftovers into waffles the following day, using other ingredients you picked up from your shop such as milk and flour.
“Nobody wants to eat grey looking mash after three days, but you can turn them into waffles with fried eggs on top and its a beautiful breakfast.”
The idea of the just buying healthy whole foods without the occasional chocolate bar or bottle of wine is arguably a bit depressing.
With wife Holly an avid baker, the pair have no trouble whipping up muffins and biscuits, occasionally weaving chocolate for cooking treats into the list.
However, for those who shudder at the thought of digging out a whisk and a bowl, why not try his informal 10-1 rule.
This is where you buy 10 whole foods for every item that is processed, such as crisps and treats.
“If you buy oven chips, then you want to try and balance that with 10 whole food items,” he explains.
If you are feeling stuck for inspiration when it comes to recipes, you can use A.I to help guide you.
And why not try out bottom shelf shopping, we found it can save you up to £500 a year.
How to save money on your food shop
Consumer reporter Sam Walker reveals how you can save hundreds of pounds a year:
Odd boxes – plenty of retailers offer slightly misshapen fruit and veg or surplus food at a discounted price.
Lidl sells five kilos of fruit and veg for just £1.50 through its Waste Not scheme while Aldi shoppers can get Too Good to Go bags which contain £10 worth of all kinds of products for £3.30.
Sainsbury’s also sells £2 “Taste Me, Don’t Waste Me” fruit and veg boxes to help shoppers reduced food waste and save cash.
Food waste apps – food waste apps work by helping shops, cafes, restaurants and other businesses shift stock that is due to go out of date and passing it on to members of the public.
Some of the most notable ones include Too Good to Go and Olio.
Too Good to Go’s app is free to sign up to and is used by millions of people across the UK, letting users buy food at a discount.
Olio works similarly, except users can collect both food and other household items for free from neighbours and businesses.
Yellow sticker bargains – yellow sticker bargains, sometimes orange and red in certain supermarkets, are a great way of getting food on the cheap.
But what time to head out to get the best deals varies depending on the retailer. You can see the best times for each supermarket here.
Super cheap bargains – sign up to bargain hunter Facebook groups like Extreme Couponing and Bargains UK where shoppers regularly post hauls they’ve found on the cheap, including food finds.
“Downshift” – you will almost always save money going for a supermarket’s own-brand economy lines rather than premium brands.
The move to lower-tier ranges, also known as “downshifting” and hailed by consumer expert Martin Lewis, could save you hundreds of pounds a year on your food shop.