In our series, Supermarket Swap, we challenge a family to change where and how they do their weekly grocery shop. Can they save money by trading old habits for new – and will they decide to switch to another supermarket as a result? If you want to take part, email money@inews.co.uk.
This week, we speak to Clare Shephard, 50, of Hampshire, who’s had a mid-life meal reset and has had to change how she shops for husband Ben, 48, and daughters Imogen, 13, and Chloe, 11. Can she get some inspiration – and save some cash – by switching from Ocado to Tesco?
Supermarket Swap
Old supermarket: Ocado
New supermarket: Tesco
New bill: £140.37
Equivalent in old supermarket: £145.90
Saving: £5.53
Clare Shephard turned 50 last October, something that made her re-evaluate her health, and her diet, having spent years of juggling work and young children. In this time, evening meals were focused on dinners that were quick, filling, and appealing to fussy eaters.
“Approaching that mega milestone in life gave me a push to look after my body, to take me into the ‘autumn and winter’ of my existence, and I need to make sure it’s strong and healthy,” says Clare.
“We would default to things like jars of curry sauce and easy meals you could make. Especially when our kids were young, they weren’t very adventurous with their food, so it was just easy to do the same thing that you knew they would eat.
“But then we would fall into a trap of indecisiveness and say, ‘let’s just get a takeaway’, then of course we’d end up spending loads of money, and it’s not healthy either.”
Since then, Clare and her husband Ben have reworked their diets and weekly meals to feature fewer carbs with more protein and vegetables. Now, a typical meal might be pan-fried fresh fish fillets with new potatoes and steamed vegetables, a vegetable based curry packed with pulses, or chicken fajitas with homemade slaw.
Their daughters, now 13 and 11, will have a similar version of the main meal – for example, Clare and Ben like their fajitas on the spicy side, so they will do a milder version for the girls.
“I’ve become very aware of how the body changes through perimenopause and menopause, so you want to make sure you’re getting the most out of the calories that you are consuming.
“Once I clicked into that mindset, it was a lot easier to meal plan, and shop with a bit more consideration,” says Clare, who runs her own PR agency, Maillot Jaune, and has recently launched an ear piercing business, Teal Needle.
Meal planning has then become the basis for how Clare and Ben shop, their preference being to shop online with Ocado.
They usually spend around £75 a week, including cleaning products and toiletries, with a £20 “top-up” shop at their local Sainsbury’s. The weekly shop also includes items for their daughters’ packed school lunches.
Despite the convenience, Clare admits bad habits have crept in, and they aren’t being as efficient or adventurous as she’d like.
But Clare is determined to change that.
“The girls have started saying that they would like to try different things,” says Clare.
“We’re trying to bring a bit more flavour in to what we’re cooking, so we look forward to cooking and eating, rather than see it as another task.”
With that in mind, Clare was keen to visit the Tesco superstore in nearby Aldershot, which the family traditionally only shops for “extra bits” for special occasions like Christmas.
Could it offer Clare and her family some new meal ideas – and save some money in the process?
Clare was impressed by the choice and variety on offer at this large Tesco, which she acknowledged that it did get overwhelming at times. But she was taken by some pre-rolled Pizza Express pizza dough for a family pizza night. This was £2.40 – the same as in Ocado – but she could have had it for £2 with a Clubcard.
In fact, not having a Clubcard saw Clare lose out on about £16 in discounts.
Clare was also enticed by some Schwartz air fryer chicken marinades at £1.20 each, and £1.30 in Ocado. Although again, they were on offer with Clubcard, which Clare missed out on.
Generally, Clare found Tesco pricing to be comparable with that of Ocado, however, there were a few items that stood out.
She was keen to try Twinings’ new range of sparkling teas as a good non-alcoholic drink option, which were £6 at Tesco, but are currently on offer with Ocado at £4.50.
Clare picked up some GetPro Chocolate High Protein Mousse for Ben, who likes to maximise his protein intake. This was £2.50 in Tesco, and is also currently on offer at Ocado for £1.75.
But some items were cheaper in Tesco. For example, Clare also included some lasagne and Bolognese ready meals for those evenings when only something quick will do, which came to £3.75 each. The equivalent meals would have been £4.25 each at Ocado.
Mozzarella sticks were also cheaper in Tesco – £3.40 for 240g compared with £4 at Ocado for 150 grams.
An online price comparison shows that Clare’s Tesco trolley – which came to £140.37 – would have been £145.90 in Ocado, so £5.53 more expensive.
On top of saving money, Clare also enjoyed the intentionality of shopping in person, and thinks a large monthly shop at this Tesco superstore could help the family with its meal planning mission.
“Ben and I have been talking about how we shop, and having more of a ‘freezer full’ that we replenish once a month, rather than having a ‘fridge full’ that we have to get through, and risk wastage,” says Clare.
“I do think that we will eat very differently over the next couple of weeks and try different things, based on a food shop that wasn’t just done by flicking online, and I like that.”
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