January and September are months when the pressure in the family budget feels more intensely. The start of the school year, the expenses with school supplies, the renewal of clothes or footwear and the return to the routine after the summer holidays trigger the bills. For those looking for ways to reduce supermarket expenses, there is a simple method that begins before leaving home: the reverse shopping list.
A different way of planning purchases
The technique was highlighted by HuffPost, a site specializing in consumer information and trends, and part of an inverted logic in the face of the common habit of writing only what is missing.
The proposal is to open the refrigerator, the freezer and the pantry, to identify what already exists and register it on a paper or a note on the mobile phone. Only then are the meals of the week or month and, lastly, the list is added to what is really missing.
According to professional organizer Alicia Iglesias, known in the digital space for tips for tidiness and household planning, this method not only helps to spend less but also prevent food waste.
When preparing the menus from the ingredients already available at home, there is a complete use of products before buying new ones.
Less waste and more space at home
According to the same source, there is an immediate benefit in terms of organization. Foods no longer accumulate forgotten at the bottom of the freezer or in the corners of the pantry. This translates into fewer products to spoil and a greater use of the existing space.
In practice, this way of planning leads to priority to what is already stored, from frozen meat to fruit and vegetables that remain in the fridge. Only what is missing to complete meals is added to the list.
Iglesias describes this process as an effective way to avoid finding “fossilized chicken fillets” months later or deteriorated fruit that was never consumed.
A habit that helps control the budget
Using the reverse shopping list can relieve financial pressure in a month when many families feel the need to tighten their belt. Going to the supermarket just for what is really lacking helps to avoid impulse purchases and to better control the budget.
Each purchased product has a definite purpose in meals, avoiding accumulating items that are forgotten or spoiling.
According to O, the feeling of organization is another of the visible gains. With fewer products taking up space and a more rational consumer logic, the kitchen itself gains in functionality. “Suddenly, it seems that the kitchen widened without doing works,” summarizes Alicia Iglesias.
The reverse list comes as well as a practical strategy to face September, a month when accounts tend to weigh more in the family budget. And unlike many solutions, it does not require investment or sophisticated applications: just paper and pen, or a simple notebook on the mobile phone.
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