The Crux of My Challenge Part 2.1: Supermarkets

Now the most expensive and yet important part of my challenge will be my food expenses. I am still eating 3 meals a deal (with fruit snacks) and making sure I have at least five fruit and veg, to maintain Diabetes UKs strategic aim of promoting healthy living.

On Wednesday of last week I had discovered Lidl and I was amazed by how cheap the stuff is there. Now I hadn't shopped there before because I wasn't sure if the produce could be that cheap and still be good for you. An article by the website moneysavingexpert.com sums it up nicely, including an index of what's best:

They may not be as widespread as the well known supermarkets but if you've one in your area Lidl, Aldiand Netto are well worth checking out. Use the store finders on their sites to see if there's one near you.

How come they're so cheap?

Shop overheads are kept to a minimum to keep prices low. To do this they locate stores where land prices are lower, keep store furnishings to a bare minimum and charge for carrier bags. Lidl and Aldi don't provide baskets and tend to use coin-operated trolleys instead. Also, all three don't accept credit cards (apart from some Scottish and Welsh stores) so remember to take cash or a debit card with you.

Weekly specials

All three have special offers which change every Thursday; you can often pick up some cracking deals on electronics as well as everyday groceries. Lidl and Netto also have additional offers on Mondays. Keep your eyes peeled for deals on their websites or, even better, Lidl and Aldi both send weekly offers by email – sign up and you'll be the first to know.

For the index visit the page here http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/shopping/are-cheap-supermarkets-good