How Much Money Are You Throwing Away?

We live in an everything now, instant gratification, disposable society.  We buy ready meals to save time.  We throw away things when we've had enough of them.  We spend out when we have money or just put it on the credit card when we don't.

According to the Love Food Hate Waste campaign we throw away on average £50 a month of uneaten food.  That's £600 a year - enough for a decent holiday.  We're more likely to do a big bulk shop once a week, rather than shopping fresh every few days - we don't have time.  We throw away perfectly edible food because they're past the Best Before, Display Until or Sell By dates.

We've all heard those stories of people who buy those bargain 'two whole chickens for £5' and then only eat the breast meat and throw the rest away!  Sheer madness!  (Never mind the quality of the chickens, how they've been raised and where they've come from.)

A roast chicken can provide at least three meals - Sunday - roast, Monday - cold chicken and salad or risotto, Tuesday - soup.  Freeze leftovers and use them later.

Here a few tips to save you time and money:

• Shop with a list - you'll get less distracted and avoid impulse spending.
• Plan your meals for the week - then buy for the meals you've planned, less waste.
• Use the freezer if you're not going to eat the food you've bought immediately.
• Have a good stock cupboard, so you have basic ingredients for several options.
• Check your fridge/freezer regularly so you know what's in there and it doesn't go off.
• Batch cook food - make double and freeze for later.
• Shop locally - buy fruit and veg every couple of days.  It has more flavour, few air miles and doesn't go off as quickly.

For other ways to save you hundreds of pounds a year and improve your money habits download the free Money Habits checklist.