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Planning your meals and your shopping is one of the easiest ways to save food as well as money as you only buy what you need to make your meals.

Here are some tips on how you can plan your meals

• use a simple meal planner to plan your meals
• don't plan all 7 days in a week - plan for 5 days without specific days for each meal, so changes can be accommodated
• remember, it’s not only dinner or tea - plan your lunches at the same time
• check what you already have at home and plan what needs eating up first
• label foods that need using first so it’s easy to spot what you’ve got
• keep a list of what's in the fridge and cupboards before you go shopping so you don’t over buy
• alternatively take a “shelfie” on your phone so you know what is in the fridge or freezer and cupboards
• making a shopping list is easy there are apps you can use, or just have a piece of paper or the back of a birthday card to keep a track of what foods you need when you use them or run out
• buy foods that can be used for several dishes
• set aside some time to batch cook for the week so that you have meals that can be put in the fridge or freezer and used for a number of meals
• eating seasonal fruit and vegetables will keep the cost down
• don’t fall foul of the special offers ask yourself “can I use it or freeze it?” before buying
• shopping online makes it easier for you to buy only what you want and not get distracted by other foods or special offers in store
• use an app like which will give you personalised recipes and put together the shopping list for you
• when shopping look for the food with the longest “Use By” dates
• don’t overcook - use a measure to get the right amount of food
• ensuring you have the right portion sizes helps
• there is a really good meal planner available on the