Revealed: toowoomba’s major supermarkets put to the price test

As the cost of living crisis worsens experts and families reveal savvy tricks to cut costs at the checkout. See how Toowoomba’s supermarkets compared.

THE supermarket price hikes are stretching the household budget of many Toowoomba families to the limit as the cost of living crisis worsens, however experts say there are some simple tips that could help families save on the weekly shop.

Price increases have hit the fresh produce, meat and dairy aisles the most, encouraging families to get creative and compare the leading supermarkets to ensure they are getting the best value.

When it comes to the major supermarkets, a Chronicle investigation found that the cheapest option for grocery basics, including fresh produce, pantry items and household cleaning products in Toowoomba was Aldi.

Competitors, Woolworths and Coles, were found to have similar price points across most of the categories, however, Woolies offers a larger selection of home brand products to keep costs down and finished slightly cheaper than Coles.

Lifestyle expert and editor at Canstar Blue, Megan Birot said there are some tried and tested tips that can make a big difference when it comes to the final price at the supermarket checkout.

“When you are shopping for produce, meat and dairy, which are the main three categories people have reported increasing in price the most in the last six months, the best thing is to shop at the end of the day,” Ms Birot said.

“A lot of those products may be nearing their expiration date so a lot of the time you can actually pick up a few good bargains if you shop at that time of day.

“Another good way is to check the unit pricing, I know a lot of people will buy things in bulk but that doesn’t necessarily mean that you are actually getting the best value.

Ms Birot said for customers looking to buy the cheapest products, scanning the shelves and opting for home brand items is a must-use technique.

“It is also good to not shop at eye level, the reason for that is because the products with the largest profit margin will be found at eye level, so the cheapest brands will often be found on the bottom shelf,” Ms Birot said.

“When you are really just looking for the cheapest stuff especially when it comes to things like rice and pasta, you can be pretty safe with buying home brand products.”

Eshel Reich and her daughter Harriet after shopping at the IGA at the Hooper Centre, Thursday, June 16, 2022. Picture: Kevin Farmer

Shopper and mum, Eshel Reich said that when it came to fresh produce she tries to grow what she can in the backyard to cut costs as well as cooking in bulk to avoid wasting any food items.

“I keep hearing about the lettuce but we don’t really need to buy lettuce because we grow it in the backyard,” Ms Reich said.

“Bulk cooking is my main strategy though, freezing a bunch of food after doing a large cook.”