A busy mum-of-three has explained how she saves £300 a month on food after being inspired by some 'tough money lessons'.
Ruth Weeks, 33, from Kent, regularly uploads pictures of her supermarket sweeps, mostly full of yellow sticker products, to help those who may be feeling the blow with the increasing living costs.
With three young children, George 10, Jessica, nine and Jasmine, seven, charity worker Ruth has nailed her budgeted shopping with some super saving tricks up her sleeve - something that has halved her halved her bill from £600 down to £300.
Ruth explains: "I have a monthly budget of £300, I spend £100 at the local butchers every six weeks, and then I do a supermarket shop, usually at Asda and B&M for cupboard foods and cleaning products, which comes to around £80 a month.
"With the remaining money, I will then shop for yellow sticker items. Sometimes I use the Too Good To Go app but it can be really hit and miss, sometimes you can get a mass of food which is great, but for me the yellow sticker products are better.
"Morrisons and Asda are the best for these, I will buy all perishable foods on yellow sticker, which will usually be fruit and veg, cold meats, sandwich fillings, cheeses and yogurts.
"The other day I only went in to Morrisons for some coriander, and I came out with £84 worth of food for £24.
"For £24 I bought two turkey roast joints, two packs of tuna steaks, a vegetarian sandwich platter, some pots of edamame beans and a punnet of raspberries.
"Last week I also bought some of the Best Before boxes from Lidl, I bought four boxes for £6, and what I got in them was amazing, they had carrots, brussels sprouts, bananas and strawberries, from the left overs I made a summer fruits crumble.
"I hate food waste; I will only ever buy what I need. People get over excited and always buy too much and then throw it away which is such a waste, especially as people are struggling for money at the minute as it is, so we should all have the chance to buy discounted food.
"Over the years, I have become addicted to seeing how far I can make my budget stretch. My friends think its amazing that I make such fresh and good meals from the discounted food I buy.
"I actually have three freezers, as I freeze a lot of what I buy. It also helps me to keep track of the dinners I have left as well.
"I've learnt a lot of ways to make my food go further with freezing it, for example I buy the wonky peppers from Morrisons for 28p, chop them up and then freeze them, I can easily add them to a chilli, bolognese or fajitas.
"I am proud that I can make my children fresh and nutritious meals every day. They love helping me meal plan each week as well, so then I know exactly what to look for in the yellow sticker sections. Yellow sticker shopping means I am able to make fresh food all of the time."
Having done this for years, Ruth is able to feed her family on a budget each week whilst knowing they are eating healthily.
Spending £300 a month on groceries, she is able to live with the rising living costs and feels as if she is now in a comfortable position.
Making home made breakfast, lunch and dinner, Ruth knows exactly what her children are eating.
Ruth adds: "I didn't do this because I was skint, I just started doing it to help George, he suffers with Autism and he is sensitive to colours which meant he would only want to eat beige food, so I wanted to introduce him to colourful meals.
"I have never been this good at saving, I have learnt some tough lessons, especially when the pandemic hit and money became tight. It made me learn how to be strict with meals and shopping. I had to work through the lockdown and it took its toll.
"One of the things I love to make him is a Thai Green Curry, which I make from scratch. I buy a 300g tofu packet for 90p, mangetout for 7p a pack, broccoli for 7p, and then Thai Green Curry paste for £1.30, egg noodles and tinned coconut milk.
"So many people don't know how to budget which really scares me, especially because the cost of everything is rising. I pay around £90 a week on petrol just to get to work and back, and that's not even taking into account going out with my children.
"I sometimes also cook dinner for my parents as well, which mean I can be making up to seven meals for dinner, so I'm glad I am able to be able to do this all fresh.
"I would love to help and inspire people who want to try and cut down on their food shopping.
"I think it is really important to show my children that they can eat well, and I will always get them to help me cook. They love it and want to help.
"My grandmother taught me how to cook and I want to pass that on to my children, they learn how to cook meals from scratch."
