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Daily Record

Lifestyle

Rachel Williams

'I spent less than £30 on Asda's Just Essentials range and was surprised by how much I got'

Asda Rachel Williams

With the cost of living crisis continuing to bite at our bank balances, many of us will be looking for the ways that we can cut back on our weekly spending.

One area that a lot of us have noticed about the recent price hikes has been our regular trip to the supermarket for the weekly groceries and essentials. With inflation levels reaching record highs of 9.4%, a lot of shoppers have been switching up their shopping habits.

From making the switch to discounted supermarkets to purchasing only non-branded products in store, there are not many things we are not willing to do in order to save some extra pennies.

Luckily, quite a few supermarkets have been revamping or expanding their range of own-branded products both online and in-stores in a bid to help customers save money during these trying times. Asda is just one of these supermarkets, as the chain recently rolled out their brand new 'Just Essentials' range.

The Big Four Grocer's brand new budget range has replaced their original Smart Price range which has been around since the 90s, and it promises to be the "Largest ever budget friendly range."

I managed to snap up 21 items without breaking the bank (Rachel Williams)

And, despite the recent rise in prices, the supermarket came under fire recently for the redesigned bright yellow packaging, with some claiming that it "embarrasses poorer families." Other shoppers have come to the supermarket's defence by proving that the packaging doesn't matter as they have managed to make huge savings.

Me? Personally, I am always here to try and make a saving wherever I can in these trying times. So, naturally, I decided to head to my local Asda based at the Aberdeen Beach Boulevard Retail Park to check the new range out. In the past, I have had issues with some supermarket budget ranges, as I find them to be incredibly limited on the fresh fruit, veg and meat options, with most of the items being frozen, so I was intrigued to see what Asda's 'Just Essentials' would offer me.

Looking to purchase fresh meat, fruit, veg and other cupboard essentials, here is how I got on with each item.

Meat and Poultry

I'll be honest, the amount of meat that was on offer in the budget range actually kind of surprised me. Usually savers ranges only offer the standard 500g pack of mince, which is understandable, but I do like a variety in my diet.

I managed to snap up two decent sized beef steaks for just £4 (£2 each), which can usually retail at between £4 - £9 for just one, depending on the brand you go for. The Just Essentials Chicken Breast Fillet Portions were also neatly priced at just £2.80, which is much better than the usual £4.60 I have paid for the exact same size packaging before. Add on the Just Essentials Boneless Salmon Portions x3 I purchased for £3.86 that I would usually pay for just two portions, and I think I got a decent selection to pop into the fridge for less.

Overall, I would say that I got a decent mix of fresh meat and poultry that can last me over the week, maybe even longer, considering there are only two people in my household.

I found that Asda's new range is advertised better than other stores budget ranges (Rachel Williams)

Fruit and Vegetables

I surprisingly didn't have any issues finding some fresh fruit and veg to pop into my trolley. Usually, this is one of the areas that is sorely lacking any good variety, but Asda's new range proved to be substantial.

I managed to grab a 240g pack of Just Essentials Green Beans for just 84p, which is actually vastly cheaper than the £1 I would usually pay for a smaller 180g bag. I also managed to pick up a packet of mixed peppers for just £1.20, which was 25p cheaper than the £1.45 original asking price.

Onto the fruit next, I found the Just Essentials five pack of Oranges for just 60p, which worked out cheaper than the £1.39 for a same size packet from Asda's Growers Selection. The Just Essentials 270g pack of fresh strawberries also came in at 20p cheaper than Asda's own same size pack.

Add on my huge 2.5kg bag of white potatoes that cost just 99p compared to Maris Piper's £1.49 for the exact same size bag, and I am pretty happy with that saving.

Cupboard and fridge staples

Now with the fresh meat, poultry, fruit and veg taken care off, I had to find some chilled and cupboard staples to add to the list. We're talking things like yoghurt, chilled meat for lunches, bread and sauces to make up some decent mid-week lunches and meals. And, again, I found a lot more than I bargained for with some prices below £1.

The 1L Just Essentials Orange Juice came in at just 69p and the Just Essentials Low Fat Yoghurt came in at just 45p. Considering they were both less than £1, I will take that as a bargain.

For some snacks and sandwich fillings, I managed to grab a 12-pack of fruit flavour yoghurt tubs for just 88p, which was much cheaper than the £1.20 for just six that were on offer. There was also a rather large 400g pack of Just Essentials Chicken Roll for sandwiches that cost me just £1.40, while a smaller packet can sometimes cost me £2!

Next up I did manage to find some cupboard staples to add to my list: bread, curry sauce, jam, instant coffee, breakfast granola, breakfast bars and naan bread.

The new range covers everything from cupboard staples to fresh fruit (Rachel Williams)

I managed to snap up a decent 800g size wholemeal loaf of bread for just 39p, which was decent considering the size of the loaf. It was the only loaf available, so I took what I could get. As for my breakfast, I managed to get a whopping 1kg bag of granola for just £1. Granola can often be one of the pricier breakfast options, sometimes retailing at £2+, So I was happy with that buy.

As for some cupboard staples, I managed to snap up quite a few for less than £1 each. This included a 454g Just Essentials Strawberry Jam for just 31p, a 440g Just Essentials Curry Sauce for just 28p, a 4 pack of naan breads for just 50p and a 100g jar of instant coffee for the small price of just 75p.

Froze n

Now, I have added on a small section here at the end for some frozen items, as I did pick up a packet of Just Essentials Four Battered White Fish Fillets. It was the only frozen item on my list, as I tend not to go for frozen items, but at just £2.35, I couldn't really scoff at the price.

I will say, despite not picking up much, there were a lot of frozen options for families and households who may be looking to stock up their freezer with some household essentials for less. These included ready meals, chips vegetables and much more. I may check them out again myself at some point, but for now, I was content with the battered fish portions.

Overall verdict

I managed to get two big bags worth of groceries for less than £30 (Rachel Williams)

Heading to the checkout and pricing up my entire shop, I have to admit that I was genuinely surprised to find that I had filled two large reusable shopping bags with groceries.

And it all cost me just £25.82 for a whopping 21 items.

Considering this covered pretty much everything you need for your groceries, including fresh and frozen options, I can't say that I am upset with the overall cost.

As I mentioned previously, I have often struggled with some supermarkets price cut campaigns and value branded products, as there is never as much variety included, but I found that this wasn't the case with Asda's new Just Essentials range. As for the packaging itself? It didn't bother me at all. If I can get in my groceries for less, the packaging can be as brightly coloured as it wants to be, and I would urge other shoppers not to turn their noses up at it. Like myself, you might end up being surprised by how much you can pop in your basket for much less.

Also, and this may seem like a small thing, I actually appreciate that Asda has promoted their Just Essentials range throughout the store and made the items easy to find. I have often found budget-priced products tucked away on the bottom shelves, or not well advertised, leading me to pick up a pricier substitute. With this new range, I found there were many aisles dedicated to the items, or decent sized promotions in store directing me to them.