Vegetables

Step one: Break the habit. Even if you have been loyal to one grocer for years, why not take this simple test to find out the cheapest supermarket for your weekly list. Log on to mysupermarket.co.uk, pick your usual groceries and it calculates the cost for the four main online supermarkets. Even if you don't generally shop online it gives you a great feel for how much your shop would cost elsewhere.

Step two: Do a stock take. Many people do a weekly shop out of habit - even though they end up throwing a lot of food away. Get creative at the end of the week and use up the leftovers. Ideally, you can stretch a seven-day shopping cycle to every ten days. At a stroke you will cut your annual shopping bill down by a quarter.

Step three: Downshift. Most stores sell goods at four different brand levels - basic/no frills, own brand, mainstream/named brand and premium brand. Each level looks better than the one before and adds upwards from 10 per cent to your bill. But do they taste better? The answer is, not always. Why not downshift to the brand level below on just one or two products on your next shop to test the difference for yourself? If the experiment works well, try a few more on the next visit. Some products will never replace your favourites - but a lot will very easily.

Step four: Prepare to be surprised. Did you know that a lot of own-brands are made in the same factories, with the same ingredients as big brand names? Only the packaging is different. But, guess what, no company wants to tell you which ones. So, if you take the downshift challenge from step three, it is up to you to find out and tell as many people as you can.

Step five: Always bag a bargain. Never pass up a BOGOF (buy one get one free) on your favourite goods that do not go off, such as shampoo or kitchen roll. A great source for current supermarket special offers is www.fixtureferrets.co.uk

And remember: in the hunt for bargains, timing is everything. There are huge reductions every day in supermarkets on items near their sell-by dates. Most stores start ticketing cut-price items by 10am every day - but the biggest bargains are to be had after 7pm.

* Teena's views represent her own opinions and are for general information only. Always seek independent advice.