‘FAKEAWAYS’ ON THE RISE AS SPENDING ON TAKEAWAYS FALLS AWAY
- Sainsbury’s reports the emergence of new DIY trend as Britain on a budget prepares fast food at home – with dramatic savings
- Poll shows collapse in household expenditure on the £5.2 billion takeaway sector, with 52% of us cutting back or no longer buying them
- Households using leftovers combined with key ‘fakeaway’ ingredients to make financial and environmental savings
YouGov research for Sainsbury’s reveals that the Friday and Saturday night call to the takeaway is becoming increasingly rare as the credit crunch bites.
The weekly call to order a number 27 with rice is in decline as budget conscious households browse their fridges for leftover ingredients that can be used for a homemade curry, Chinese or pizza.
More than half (52%) of those polled for Sainsbury’s said that they had reduced significantly the amount that they spend on takeaway food or stopped entirely since the beginning of the year. More than a third (37%) have cut back their expenditure and 15 percent said that they have stopped buying takeaways altogether.
The most recent ONS statistics revealed that Britain spends nearly £100 million per week on takeaways.
28% said that they now routinely use leftover meat and vegetables in curries and 26% use leftover vegetables in Chinese-style stir fries. Around one in four (22%) is more likely to make good use of leftovers as a direct result of the credit crunch and 20% said that they now throw away less food.
Sales of key ‘fakeaway’ ingredients are up at Sainsbury’s this year as households try to emulate Indian, Chinese and Italian restaurant tastes for a fraction of the cost. Vindaloo curry paste sales are up 33% year on year, plain poppadums are up 47%, light coconut milk is up 14% and Peshwari naans are up 16%.
Alison Austin, head of sustainability at Sainsbury’s, said: “Fakeaways are here to stay. They’re created for a fraction of the cost of traditional takeaways, you know what’s going into them and they use up food that would otherwise be chucked out and sent to landfill.”
Alison continued: “A staggering third of all the food we buy is thrown out, according to recent research, so what tastier way is there to tackle an environmental problem and save a lot of money? Leftover vegetables and meat are ideal ingredients for curries, and pizzas lend themselves to a huge range of toppings. Cooking fakeaways at home is great fun and is the perfect way to love your leftovers.”
Better value, Indian and Chinese ready meals, which were recently praised for their relatively low fat content by Which?, are also growing in popularity, reflecting the savings they offer over conventional takeaways. Sales of Sainsbury’s Taste the Difference pizzas are up 513% year on year.
Sainsbury’s five step guide to the fakeaway habit:
1. Curries by their nature are a mixture of meat and vegetables. This makes bowls of leftovers from the fridge a perfect source for curry ingredients.
2. Many leftovers are perfect for pizza toppings – leftover cheese, tomatoes, peppers, onions and mushrooms are perfect toppings, as are most meats. Always keep a box of ready-made pizza bases in the freezer.
3. Most vegetables are also great ingredients for a Chinese-style stir fry.
4. Keep jars of olives, capers and anchovies in your store cupboard – they make great additions to a pizza and a little goes a long way.
5. Freeze any leftover tomato-based pasta sauce – it makes a great pizza topping.
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