BBC Good Food

1-20 of 27 comments

• StormyRaincloud

  1 August 2008, 11:44AM

  StormyRaincloud

  There is nothing wrong with value brands, often they are no different, they just don't have fancy 'let's show off and show the neighbours how much we spend' labels on. I've always bought the value/smart price brands. Consumers that are feeling the pinch who have always bought the more expensive brands, can change to value and save money. We as a family having always bought value brands have no leeway to save more money. We have £120 to spend on groceries, it used to be £70 that we spent, now we are spending more than we have, and we are very worried. I do all scratch cooking but now we can no longer afford fresh fruit and veg to keep my kids healthy. Something has to give.

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• jenny

  1 August 2008, 1:41PM

  jenny

  why pay more when some of the value products are good enough? tinned tomatoes for instance, or a bag of value peppers - perfect for ratatouille! however my mother assures me she can tell the difference between supermarket bran flakes and brand name bran flakes.

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• Italiana

  1 August 2008, 8:15PM

  Italiana

  I've tried value dishwasher tablets.....and do you know what? they're not at all bad! Will certainly buy them again. £1.75 for 30 v's £2.59 for 25?! I agree with you Jenny there is absolutely no difference in value and standard veg...however, tinned, jar and cereals...sorry guys but there certainly is a difference in quality. Has anyone ventured within the German supermarkets? These I find to be cheap in price and better tasting than the blue striped brand.....

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• redsnapperuk

  2 August 2008, 7:01AM

  redsnapperuk

  We recently have been using two supermarkets to do our shopping at and have found that we have saved money. We have to as we now have my mother in law living with us and another baby on the way which takes us to 3 kids. I have found that going to the cheaper supermarkets I have been able to pick up some staples far cheaper than I could have imagined. I purchase cereal, tinned tomatoes, pesto, pasta, pasta sauce, frozen fish, tomato ketchup and other bits which certainly helps our budget. We don't purchase meats or dairy products as we like to ensure we purchase British produced and as the products don't list where they are made or where the meat products are from we prefer to stick with British only. But I say if you want to save a few pennies, give the cheap supermarkets a try.

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• tigerblue

  2 August 2008, 5:29PM

  tigerblue

  I am all for the value products but draw the line when flavour/quality varies for example i can tell the difference between value tinned tomatoes and brand tins and therefore pay the difference which can be excessive.

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• jo

  3 August 2008, 1:33PM

  jo

  value brands are fab if you need to tighten your belt a bit, but there is always the question- do they taste any different? Well yes in some cases they do and then im always worried about what is in them. I have no problem with anything that comes from a tin jar or packet but what does concern me is the fruit and veg. It must be sprayed with pesticides and junk, so we decided to grow our own and it has saved us a small fortune!

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• Juno

  3 August 2008, 4:11PM

  Juno

  Read the labels on cans and packets carefully. Some of the cheaper options are loaded with preservatives and trans fats etc. Aldi and Lidl do offer an alternative to "own brands". We buy unknown brands on holiday so why not try them here?

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• shez

  4 August 2008, 5:25PM

  shez

  Agree with Tigerblue that the difference can be a lot with tinned tomatoes in the taste department. Value ones are real watery with none of the usual rich taste but if needs must, I would use the cheaper brand. Beans can sometimes be a bit hard in cheaper brands too so will stick with my faves!

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• morgan79

  4 August 2008, 8:40PM

  morgan79

  I have recently started using the value products from the supermarket, and have noticed no change at all (in fact the crisps taste better to me). I have also started to go to the local market for fresh(er) fruit and veg, which is saving me a fortune, and they last longer and are much more fresher. Next for me is the butchers to see if can save even more money, sick to death of paying supermarkets all my wages.

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• drusilla

  5 August 2008, 12:17PM

  drusilla

  morgan's right about markets. I do most of my fruit & veg, and indeed meat, shopping at a couple of local markets, and not only is it cheaper, but most of the products you can buy are British! For example - potatoes, tomatoes, garlic, 4 pork steaks, 2 chicken breast fillets, onions, watercress, lettuce, beetroot, radishes... that lot was under £15. Not a chance in my local Tesdasons....

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• aquarius

  5 August 2008, 12:22PM

  aquarius

  I have tried morrisons value curry sauce price 5p a jar, yes 5p a jar i was surprised it was so good. I just added chicken, onions, and peas served with rice. cheap meal.

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• Lollipop

  5 August 2008, 7:49PM

  Lollipop

  When i was expecting my first baby i was totally addicted to Tesco value tomato soup! Not sure it was the best nutrition i could have had but those cravings are pretty powerful. have to admit i don't touch it now but always buy value tomatoes!

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• Joanne

  5 August 2008, 9:38PM

  Joanne

  I am a Sainsburys shopper and always thought I would be; however decided to try Aldi and was pleasantly suprised! Cleaning products are so much cheaper than elsewhere and the cheeses & meats are fab! I also bought some vegetables, and they again were great. Why pay £1 for an aubergine or sweet potato when they are 50% cheaper here!

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• Sally's file

  5 August 2008, 10:14PM

  Sally's file

  I buy 'value' products such as kidney beans, tinned sweetcorn, butter, tuna, tinned tomatoes, flour basically staples - I defy anyone to tell the difference between value kidney beans and the more expensive ones; sweetcorn is a bargain - a large 'value' tin is 17p whereas the more known brands are about 60p for half the size! Ready made foods don't fare so well; we've tried yoghurts and creme caramels but they don't taste very good.

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• the Ships Cook

  6 August 2008, 7:13PM

  the Ships Cook

  An interesting thread, as a few months back when shopping online I entered 'value' in the search field. There are quite a lot of new products being placed in that range. Personal faves are tinned sweetcorn/tuna/tomatoes (all fine for making a meal with). I echo Italiana's comments re Dishwasher Tablets. They seem OK to me, and may not have all the 'sparkle' rinse stuff (or whatever it is), but does the job. Now, this could be penny pinching to the extreme, and no I didn't come out in a rash.....Value Shower Gel at 10p - doesn't have any posh aroma, but washed me OK.

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• the Ships Cook

  6 August 2008, 7:37PM

  the Ships Cook

  ....and finally, our local convenience shop where almost everything is marked up, 10 free range eggs for £1.39. Is that the lowest anywhere I wonder?

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• Ali S

  6 August 2008, 7:38PM

  Ali S

  A tip with cheap tinned toms, is just add a squirt of tomato puree to the mix too. I've always bought shop brands, but also find that planning what I'm buying for what meal helps with the budget (and remembering to allow for days we're not all going to need tea!). And if in doubt, there is always frozen mince. I've had to change which market stall I use for my fruit n veg though as discovered that the one at the front is in full sun all day, so the produce doesn't last 5 minutes when you get it home. I had strawberries that went mouldy before 12 hours had passed, and took them back.

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• locks

  7 August 2008, 10:22AM

  locks

  I totally agree that some value products are excellent value for money I am not a food snob and don't mind where I shop as long as I get value for money. I have recently shopped in Lidl & Aldi and find a lot of their products excellent value for money after alll they are German based companies and Germans don't like second best go on give them a try and let me know what you think.

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• noodlepie

  7 August 2008, 9:36PM

  noodlepie

  @morgan79 - you reminded me - Kwik Save ultra value plain crisps, came in a plain white bag with nothing but Ready Salted on the bag - superb. Do they still make them? Just cannot imagine going down the bargain baked bean route. Too many bad experiences... :)

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• Suejay

  10 August 2008, 11:12AM

  Suejay

  I also have tried Lidl and their beans are really nice, I do agree though that the cheap cereal does taste different and my kids wouldnt eat them, so to me that was wasting money as I had to throw them out. I do a lot of baking and the cheap flour makes no difference at all to the end result. But as someone else mentioned value tinned tomatoes are more watery and value tinned custard is just plain nasty lol Being a single mum with 3 boys at home I have to budget and I find the best way is to shop around, I buy my eggs from a local chicken farm and there is such a difference in free range fresh eggs, and it works out cheaper than from the supermarket, but the only thing I wont buy cheap is meat, I do think that does make a difference.

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