Food related actions
Saving money
Similar to previous waves, the most likely money saving activities were buying ‘reduced to clear’ food items, cooking more food than needed to freeze for later, and bulking out meals with cheaper ingredients. The proportion doing each of these more often in the last 6 months was similar to W21 except for cooking more food to freeze which significantly decreased.
| Activities done MORE often in the previous six months to save money | W22 July 2026 | W21 December 2025 | W20 July 2025 | W19 December 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bought ‘reduced to clear’ food items | 33% | 32% | 32% | 30% |
| Cooked more food than you need to freeze and eat later | 25% | 29% | 29% | 25% |
| Skipped meals or reduced size of meal | 22% | 22% | 20% | 19% |
| *Used the ‘sniff test’ when deciding if food past it’s use by date is safe to eat | 20% | 21% | 22% | 19% |
| *Reheated cooked food more than once | 18% | 18% | 18% | 16% |
Older age groups (65+) were more likely to state they don’t do these activities.
Similar to W21, around 1 in 10 had done most of these activities less often in the last 6 months to save money. The only difference reported this wave was a decline in those stating they bought reduced to clear food items less often (9% from 14% W21).
Activities done LESS often in previous six months to save money
| W22 July 2026 | W21 December 2025 | W20 July 2025 | W19 December 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cooked more food than you need to freeze and eat later | 11% | 11% | 10% | 11% |
| *Reheated cooked food more than once | 10% | 12% | 10% | 10% |
| Bought ‘reduced to clear’ food items | 9% | 14% | 11% | 10% |
| Skipped meals or reduced size of meal | 9% | 10% | 11% | 8% |
| *Used the ‘sniff test’ when deciding if food past it’s use by date is safe to eat | 9% | 9% | 10% | 9% |
Other activities (not to save money)
Other activities that respondents reported doing more frequently over the past six months included cooking food from scratch and buying fresh produce, although the latter has declined since W20, when it saw an increase. The proportion doing the other activities more often were similar to previous waves.
| Activities done MORE often in the previous six months (in general) | W22 July 2026 | W21 December 2025 | W20 July 2025 | W19 December 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| *Cooked or prepared food from scratch | 33% | 35% | 35% | 33% |
| Bought fresh produce or foods | 22% | 25% | 29% | 21% |
| *Bought ready made meals | 16% | 17% | 15% | 15% |
| Bought fish | 15% | 15% | 16% | 12% |
| Bought meat | 14% | 17% | 16% | 13% |
| Bought snacks | 14% | 16% | 17% | 12% |
| Ordered takeaway (collected or delivered) | 13% | 11% | 12% | 10% |
| Eaten out | 10% | 9% | 10% | 7% |
| Activities done LESS often in previous six months (in general) | W22 July 2026 | W21 December 2025 | W20 July 2025 | W19 December 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eaten out | 49% | 50% | 46% | 49% |
| Ordered takeaway (collected or delivered) | 40% | 43% | 41% | 39% |
| Bought snacks | 28% | 28% | 28% | 30% |
| Bought ready made meals | 26% | 26% | 26% | 27% |
| Bought fish | 22% | 22% | 20% | 20% |
| Bought meat | 18% | 20% | 20% | 19% |
| Bought fresh produce or foods | 13% | 14% | 11% | 11% |
| Cooked or prepared food from scratch | 12% | 11% | 11% | 10% |