2023-10-10 04:35:55
In times of inflation, it’s not just health premiums or rents that explode. The prices of food products have also soared, with an average increase of almost 7% last spring.
Unlike our French neighbors, here there is no question of the government intervening to block prices. The Federal Council is calling on households to save money. No problem: basik has found four good deals for half-price food purchases, in supermarkets and small shops.
Take advantage of expired foods
The first tip is to go to the supermarket to hunt down unsold items that are reaching the deadline. You can find everything, especially at the end of the day or on Saturdays, with discounts of up to 50%. By shopping around the main brands, basik was easily able to purchase what was needed to prepare a complete meal at a discounted price for several guests, wine and dessert included.
But can we eat these foods without a second thought? Yes, believes Rebecca Eggenberger, food manager at the Fédération romande des consommateurs. However, you have to be careful, she warns: not all sell-by dates have the same meaning. The instructions “to consume until…” must be strictly respected, in particular for very perishable foods such as ground meat or poultry. For other products marked “preferably before…”, you can, however, easily exceed the date indicated on the packaging, sometimes by several months.
The FRC has also published a Summary sheet that can be displayed in your kitchen. This is a good way to avoid food waste, which in Switzerland represents 90 kg of food per person thrown away each year, for a value of 600 francs.
>> Read also: Initiatives are increasing to save “ugly” fruits and vegetables
The “fresh from the day before” from bakeries
Second good tip, “fresh the day before” baked goods sold at reduced prices. This is the concept of Äss-Bar stores, born 10 years ago in Zurich and present today in seven Swiss cities. Basik tested the Lausanne brand, in Petit-Chêne, a stone’s throw from the station. Result: sandwiches for 4 francs, pastries and bread from 2 francs, croissants for 50 cents… everything is around half the price of elsewhere, for almost identical quality.
Every morning, two trucks tour around ten partner bakeries to collect unsold items. The store wants to be a real company, which pays salaries in line with industry standards to its nine employees. “It’s proof that the concept works. We can sell things that yesterday had no value and today have one,” rejoices manager Jaime Palacios.
>> Listen to the report from the “Ici la Suisse” sequence during the launch of the “Frais de la vie” concept: Ici la Suisse – Bakeries sell yesterday’s products at reduced prices / La Matinale / 5 min. / April 4, 2019
Self-picking from the producer
Third tip, go and help yourself directly from the producer to avoid intermediaries and the margins they take along the way. A generally win-win system for the farmer and the consumer. Basik tried to pick his own fruits and vegetables in Versoix, in the canton of Geneva. Result: Gala apples of impeccable Swiss quality half the price of the Coop or Migros. “We find ourselves there because we can deduct the price of labor, but also of storage and packaging,” explains Christophe Courtois, who operates the family farm.
The FRC supports these short circuits. “Reducing intermediaries allows you to be sure that what you pay for a fruit or vegetable goes directly to the producer,” explains Rebecca Eggenberger. Because when it comes to the margins of mass distribution, opacity reigns. “The FRC carried out investigations, and we saw that these margins might represent up to 50% of the final price for certain food products. We are demanding more transparency from large distributors.”
>> Also listen to the Let’s Talk survey on strawberry self-picking: Everything you need to know regarding strawberry self-picking / Let’s talk regarding it / 7 min. / June 12, 2023
Fourth good plan, buy in bulk to lower the bill. Basik accompanied a family who was going to pick up a quarter of beef from a Friborg butcher’s shop. After deboning, this gave 50 kg of fresh meat, cut and packaged before their eyes according to their wishes, all at the unbeatable price of 26 francs/kg, for Angus beef raised in the region.
“You will have minced meat, but also roast and beef fillet for 26 francs,” comments butcher Yves Meys. “Today, at retail, there is perhaps only ground meat [de boeuf] which is sold for less than 26 francs. Everything else is more expensive.” And in fact that day, on the Coop and Migros sites, the cheapest Swiss roast beef was, for example, 35 francs, and fillet from 55.10 francs.
Conclusion: small businesses are not necessarily reserved for bobos. By looking a little, you can find what you’re looking for there just as much as in the big box stores.
>> Read also: Purchasing power: compare your receipt to that of previous months
Alain Orange/vic
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