Fed is Best: Small Ways to Make Your Grocery Budget Stretch
It’s not news to any of us that it’s chaos trying to shop for food right now.
Butter at $8.60. Cheese over $13. Mince at $21.73/kg.
And two-minute noodles? Even they’ve joined the cost-of-living party.
Food prices have jumped 4.6% in the past year — the biggest leap since 2023 — and every week it feels like our grocery bills have grown another set of teeth.
For so many of us, it’s not just about tightening the belt. It’s about making impossible choices:
Do I heat the house this week, or make sure there’s enough food?
Do I skip lunch so the kids have dinner?
Do I put back the apples and get more bread instead?
If this is you, I want to say this clearly: fed is best.
If your kids are fed and you’re fed — even if the meals aren’t perfect or pretty — you are doing an incredible job in a really hard season.
The following are some tips that might help. This isn’t a “buy a cow and churn your own butter” kind of list. These are small, realistic things you can do right now to make your budget stretch without adding to your stress.
1. Learn to cook (if you don’t already)
I know it’s obvious, but it’s also powerful. Cooking from scratch is one of the quickest ways to cut costs. You don’t need fancy skills, just a few basics you can make on repeat. Start with simple wins: stir fry, pasta with sauce, scrambled eggs on toast. The goal isn’t gourmet. It’s filling, cheap, and tasty.
2. Frozen and canned are just as good (sometimes better)
Frozen veg is often cheaper than fresh, and because it’s picked and frozen at peak ripeness, the nutrition is the same — sometimes even better. Canned tomatoes, beans, lentils, and corn can bulk out meals, add fibre, and help you get dinner on the table for a fraction of the cost.
3. Flip your meal planning
Instead of picking recipes and then shopping for them, start with the supermarket specials and build from there. If chicken thighs are half price, they’re going in two meals that week. If broccoli is $5 a head, we’re leaving it and swapping in whatever’s cheap.
4. Make meat the sidekick, not the star
When meat prices are this high, treat it as a flavour boost, not the whole meal. Add lentils to mince, double the veg in a curry, or have one or two meat-free nights each week. Soups, pasta, veggie stir fries — all cheaper, still filling.
5. Beat the food waste monster
Picky kids? Join the club. Food waste is soul-crushing when you’re counting every dollar. But it can be so hard if they have genuine food aversions.
Serve smaller portions and let them come back for seconds.
Freeze leftovers for another night.
Chuck sad-looking fruit into smoothies, muffins, or pancakes.
Try and meal prep their safe foods so you have them on hand at home.
6. Turn it into a game
Get the kids involved in meal planning. Set a challenge: each dinner has to cost under $X (whatever fits in your budget). Let them choose a meal and help find the cheapest way to make it. They’re more likely to eat what they helped pick, and they learn about budgeting along the way.
7. Let tech do the work
Tools like ChatGPT can create a week’s worth of meals based on your budget, dietary needs, and even your supermarket specials list. Let it do the thinking for you — one less thing to juggle.
8. Shop online to dodge temptation
Online shopping lets you see your total as you go. If you go over budget, swap something out before you pay. And no walking past the chocolate aisle “by accident.” Just remember, you might have to pay around $6 for packing - but it might save you in the long run.
9. Build a “can’t touch it” pantry
Keep a small stash of cheap, shelf-stable basics — pasta, rice, noodles, canned beans, soup — that you only touch in a tight week. Think of it like it’s your grocery emergency fund.
10. Shop one day later
If you shop weekly, push it back by a day. Over a year, that’s four fewer big shops. That’s four fewer huge receipts.
11. Give yourself grace
If your meals aren’t Insta-worthy, that’s fine. If you’re making sure your family is fed and you’re finding small ways to stretch your budget, you’re winning. Full stop.
And If You’re Struggling to Afford Groceries
If your grocery budget is stretched to breaking point, please know you’re not alone and there is help out there.
Community and Charity Support
Foodbanks: Search Foodbank + your town to find the nearest one.
Kai Share programs: Many communities run free produce or pantry swaps — check local Facebook groups.
Community harvests: Some regions have community orchards or gardens where anyone can pick fruit or veg.
Churches and marae: Often have food parcels or discounted produce boxes available.
Government and Agency Support
Work and Income: May offer food grants or emergency support — you don’t always need to be on a benefit to apply.
School lunch programs: If your kids’ school is part of Ka Ora, Ka Ako, they can get free lunches at school.
Local council hardship support: Some councils provide food vouchers or subsidies for families in need.
Asking for help is not a sign of failure, it’s a way of making sure you and your whānau have what you need to get through a tough season.
