Yahoo Finance How an Aussie mum is saving $50 a week on groceries
A budget-savvy mum is saving thousands on groceries by making one easy change.
As the cost of living skyrockets, one Aussie mum has shared a simple way to save on your grocery shop - it’s just not pretty.
Melbourne mum-of-three Stephanie Spence is saving at least $50 per week by buying “ugly” fruit and vegetables.
Spence purchases a $65 box of imperfect fruit and vegetables each fortnight from Farmers Pick, a grocery-delivery service, and usually tops it up with an extra $25 more fruit.
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“There were times when my grocery bill was going up and I looked at ways I could save and found Farmers Pick,” Spence told Yahoo Finance.
“It’s seasonal and things that supermarkets don’t like the look of, or it might be the wrong shape, but I find it still tastes delicious and is totally fine.”
Spence now spends about $600 per month on groceries for her family of four (including food and personal household items) - or about $140 per week.
According to Farmers Pick, which delivers to parts of Victoria, NSW and the ACT, Aussies can pay up to 30 per cent less than supermarket prices on the imperfect fruit and vegetables.
Woolworths offers a similar concept with “The Odd Bunch”, which it launched back in 2014, and says shoppers can save at least 20 per cent by opting for the “ugly” produce. Meanwhile, Harris Farm offers “Imperfect Picks” which it says are up to 50 per cent cheaper.
Other delivery-box services include Good and Fugly, which operates in Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney, and Funky Food, which focuses on Brisbane, the Gold Coast and Sunshine Coast.
It’s estimated that 20-40 per cent of fruit and vegetables don’t make it to supermarkets because they don’t meet cosmetic standards.
Meanwhile, the government found Aussies wasted about 312 kilograms per person each year - or about $2,000 to $2,500 per household per year.
Spence said using a delivery service had helped her avoid overspending at the shops.
“I shop with a list for my household items but it’s easy to get caught by a shiny sign,” she said.
“I’ve definitely noticed it’s made an impact to my bottom line because it’s really easy to pick up a ‘special’ that blows your budget out.”
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