Three items to stop buying in Iceland to reduce your grocery bill
ICELAND is known for offering good value when it comes to the weekly shop, but is everything worth your money?
We can tell you which items you should avoid buying in Iceland if you want to save some money from your grocery bill.
Iceland is known for its frozen food specialty, but it has much more to offer than just the freezer section.
Customers can get cheap deals on branded food and basic products such as milk, eggs, bread and fresh vegetables.
If you’re not sure where the nearest Iceland is, you can find out using the store locator on the website.
You can also shop Iceland online at The Food Warehouse website, which also lists all the latest deals and multi-buy offers.
Delivery is free if you spend at least €40 online, and if you want home delivery in the store, this is a minimum of €25.
All you have to do is book a delivery time that suits you and wait for your groceries to arrive.
Usually the popular retailer is very competitive on price, but there are some items you may be better off buying elsewhere.
We’ve rounded up all the items you should stop buying in Iceland if you want to cut your grocery costs, and which bargains you should stock up on instead.
Items to stop buying
Pasta
Although Iceland has a good range of branded goods, it does not sell affordable own-brand alternatives.
We spoke to shopping expert Andy Barr, who has worked in the money-saving industry for almost 30 years, to get his thoughts.
He said: ‘I would avoid pantry items such as bread, pasta and tinned food.
“Although there is a good range of products, Iceland doesn’t sell affordable own-brand alternatives like all other supermarkets do, so if you want to try cheaper ranges to save on your weekly shop, you don’t have to, but you will be able to do that here.”
We looked at how Iceland stacks up against other supermarkets’ own-brand offerings when it comes to store cupboard staples.
When it comes to bread, Iceland has brands such as Warbutons, Mothers Pride and Kingsmill.
It also has its own label where an Icelandic 800g thick-cut soft white roll costs £1.
This seems like a pretty good deal when you compare it to a Warbutons toastie loaf for £1.40.
However, we checked out a thick white Village Bakery loaf in Aldi, which cost just 75p for an 850g loaf, saving 25p on the Icelandic loaf.
Fresh fruits and vegetables
Another item you should probably buy elsewhere if you want to get the cheapest price is fresh fruits and vegetables.
Although Iceland has a good range of fresh produce, Andy says other stores may do better.
He said: “Contrary to popular belief, Iceland has a good range of fresh produce at decent prices.
“That said, you can certainly find cheaper deals elsewhere; ASDA, Lidl and Aldi often work out cheaper.”
We checked how much a pack of bananas costs in Iceland at Aldi.
At the time of writing, a pack of five bananas at Aldi costs 78p, while Icelandic bananas cost £1, meaning Aldi is 22p cheaper.
Toiletries
Shop around before purchasing toiletries such as shower gel, toothpaste and deodorant as you may be able to get it cheaper by shopping elsewhere too.
We checked online and while there is a small selection of branded items such as Colgate toothpaste and Radox shower gel, there is no own brand alternative.
Additionally, unlike groceries and frozen items, there didn’t appear to be any multi-purchase deals or offers in the toiletries section of the website at the time we checked.
However, it is important to note that this does not mean that there are no offers on these products.
A 75ml tube of Colgate whitening toothpaste costs £1 in Iceland, while buying the same tube in Aldi costs 99p.
While that’s not a huge saving, other places like Superdrug often have deals for their members that can reduce the price significantly, so it’s worth keeping an eye on.
Items to stock up on
Big brands and dupes
One of the ways you can get a deal in Iceland is through the big dupes in the freezer section.
Andy said: “You can’t go to Iceland without making the most of the huge range of frozen foods.
“The best products available, in my opinion, are the frozen versions of restaurant and food store favorites such as TGI Friday and Greggs.”
“Not only does this give consumers easy access to the food they know and love, it is often cheaper than going to the restaurant itself.”
An example is the savings you can make by buying a pack of Greggs frozen sausage rolls in Iceland instead of fresh from the bakery.
A pack of frozen sausage rolls costs around 75p each, compared to £1.20 if you buy it fresh from the bakery.
That’s why you save 45 cents per sausage roll by buying the frozen package.
Frozen meat
If you want to save a few euros in your shopping cart, it is also worth keeping an eye on the frozen meat department.
Andy said: “The frozen meat section in Iceland can also be great, especially for large families who want to keep everyone well fed on a budget.”
Most frozen meats come with a three-for-£10 multi-buy offer, meaning you can save even more if you buy three items included in the deal.
One of Andy’s examples is a 1.9kg bag of frozen chicken portions for £3.50, which works out to £1.84/kg.
This is significantly less than other retailers such as ASDA, where 1kg of frozen chicken breast costs £4.25.
Ice cream
One of the things Andy recommends looking out for is the huge selection of ice creams on offer.
He said: “The last range I would recommend trying is the ice cream. The variety of brands and flavors in Iceland is unparalleled.
“From high-protein ice cream to Terry’s Chocolate Orange, J2O and even Lotus Biscoff brand products, there is a huge selection of unique flavors to suit everyone’s taste buds.”
We looked at the website and there are 97 types and brands of ice cream on offer.
For example, we found Cadbury, Ben and Jerry’s and their own brand of Rocket and Sprinkle lollipops
Each of the items costs between £2 and a fiver for a box or tub, making it pretty cheap to feed a family.
We priced a jar of Ben & Jerry’s Phish Food (465ml), which cost £3 at the time we checked on Iceland’s website.
We found the same bath in Asda for £5.15, meaning you can make a huge saving of £2.15 by buying this item in Iceland.
How can I save on my supermarket shopping?
There are plenty of ways to save money at your grocery store.
You can look for yellow or red stickers on products, which indicate when they are discounted.
If the food is fresh, eat it quickly or freeze it for another time.
Making a list should also save you money because you’ll be less likely to make hasty purchases when you go to the grocery store.
Choosing your own brand can be an easy way to save hundreds of dollars a year on your food bill, too.
This means ditching the ‘best’ or ‘luxury’ products and instead opting for ‘proprietary’ or value-for-money lines.
Many supermarkets have shaky fruit and vegetable programs where you can get cheap prices if they are misshapen or imperfect.
For example, Lidl runs its Waste Not scheme, offering 5kg boxes of fruit and vegetables for just £1.50.
If you’re on a low income and a parent, you could potentially get up to £442 a year in Healthy Start vouchers, which you can also use at the supermarket.
In addition, many municipalities offer supermarket vouchers as part of the Household Support Fund.