Food price inflation hit a record high in September, and there appears to be no slowing down in the rising cost of the weekly shop. That means it is more important than ever to find ways to cut back where you can in the supermarkets, and consumer rights expert Scott Dixon has been putting together a list of the best times to take advantage of the yellow stickers that offer big savings.
Scott, who runs The Complaints Resolver blog, told the Mirror that the supermarkets place yellow stickers on food when it is typically reaching the end of its shelf life but is still safe to eat. These give up to 75% off products, but knowing when to bag a deal can sometimes be confusing as it varies between stores.
He says that each store starts reducing prices at different times, but Scott has a rough guide for when the yellow stickers are introduced near his home in Edinburgh.
“The discounting times vary across stores and the country, although there are patterns that are generally followed everywhere,” said Scott. “If you don't know, just ask a staff member and they will happily tell you! Look out for where they are usually placed too.
“Most families do their shopping on a Saturday, so doing your food shopping when everyone else has done theirs gives you better opportunities to grab the bargains.”
Aldi
Scott usually finds fresh produce is discounted by 30% the day before "use by" dates expire. "This is kept until about 5.30pm weekdays and 2.30pm - 3pm on Sundays, where anything left is reduced to 75%," he said.
Lidl
Scott says Lidl "are a bit more generous" with their 30% off tickets on fresh produce - with up to two days left on the "use by" date. Final reductions are usually done late in the evening, he said, with round pricing often at 70p to £2 - although it does vary.
"Anything that they suspect will be difficult to sell gets a better discount and is reduced a bit earlier," said Scott.
Morrisons
Morrisons staff where Scott lives can often be seen reducing all fresh produce for the following day by 50% from 7pm onwards. "If you're happy with that, you will often find scores of crates of ready meals, fresh meat and other perishables to fill your trolley," he said. "You rarely see any further final deductions now."
Tesco
Scott said the smaller convenience stores are the place to go for reduced sandwiches, wraps, pasta bowls, sushi and salads. This could be good if you're looking for a cheap lunch the next day. "These items are only reduced by 50% now after 7pm and are not staged throughout the day. They were reduced by 75% after 7pm until recently," he said.
The larger Tesco Metro stores are great for tray baked meals, ready meals, fresh meat, sandwiches and everything else. "Tesco tend to do three stage reductions in these stores - first stage is 10am to 2pm, often at 25%, then 2pm to 7pm is generally around 40% to 60% - depending on how easy or difficult they expect the produce to sell," said Scott. "Final reductions are from 7pm onwards."
Sainsbury's
The convenience stores are best for the yellow sticker bargains, said Scott - but the deals aren't as good as they used to be. "I have found the larger stores to be quite stingy with little to choose from, whereas the convenience stores used to have some good bargains at 90% off from 8pm onwards. Now you will generally only see 50% discounts. Don't leave it too late though as it goes in the bin by 9.30pm."
Co-op
The Co-op tends to follow Aldi in terms of discounting fresh produce by 30% the day before use by dates expire. "These deals then go straight to 75% from about 6.30pm onwards," said Scott.
Marks and Spencer
Scott said M&S discounts are normally done in two stages. The first reductions are normally 25%, with the final reductions made from about 5pm onwards at 75%.
"Look out for the meal boxes, where you can get set meals for two that can be broken down and frozen," he said. "Don't forget to use your loyalty cards to rack up loyalty points and a credit card to pay for everything that gives you cash back based on your total spend."
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