Mum blogger Jody Allen on how to save $100 a month on school lunches

When it comes to the family budget, most mums think of saving money on purchases.

They rarely think of the money lost by food waste. Take school lunches for example.

Not only is it challenging to stretch the grocery money far enough to feed our children school lunches they'll be happy to eat, we're also wasting time and money on foods that don't get eaten or that are forgotten at the back of the fridge or lost at the bottom of the freezer.

Thankfully, Jody Allen from the Stay at Home Mum website is doing all of the thinking for us, and has zeroed in on school lunches.

LISTEN: In the latest episode of Honey Mums, Deb Knight talks to Jody Allen from Stay at Home Mum about how to save money on school lunches, and catches up with author Nikki Gemmell on her biggest parenting fail and how it lead her to make changes for the better.

https://omny.fm/shows/9honey-super-mums/dkmumspodcast14

In this week's episode of Honey Mums, Jody Allen talks to Nine's Deb Knight about her top four tips for saving money on school lunches and the beauty is you can start saving money immediately.

1. Make use of your freezer

Allen says the first step is to make your children's school lunches ahead of time, perhaps on the day you do your weekly shop, and then freeze them.

"When you do your weekly shop, buy all the things that you'll need for the school lunch like your ham, and then make all your sandwiches and put them in the freezer," she says. "You save money because there's no wastage and there's no 'manky' ham at the back of the fridge and you save time on school mornings."

2. Buying in bulk

The mother-of-two has always been a fan of buying in bulk and says purchasing larger quantities of foods your children like will save you time and money.

Avoid pre-packaged foods and snacks at all costs if you really want to save.

"Buy in bulk and then put them into smaller containers," she says. "So buy the bigger yogurt -- like in the one litre containers -- and then serve it out into smaller containers.

"Just make sure they bring it home to wash it or it gets very, very stinky."

3. Think outside the square

So many parents are left feeling frustrated when their children come home with uneaten sandwiches.

It's no wonder. Who wants to eat the same thing each and every day?

Allen says the best way to combat this and save money is to "think outside the square" and give sandwiches a miss sometimes.

"Sometimes I can buy [English] muffins for a dollar a loaf or even less than that," she says. "So have a bit of Vegemite or some baked beans and cheese.

You don't have to have bread for lunch and there are much cheaper options."

4. Make use of leftovers

Knight says she'll often bring dinner leftovers to work for lunch, so they don't go to waste. Allen says another way to use them up is to give them to your children for school lunches.

"They've got thermoses these days," she says.

"I like the cocktail Frankfurts. In the morning I'll heat them up, pop them in the thermos and they've got something warm to eat."

Share your story by sending an email to Jo Abi at jabi@nine.com.au or via Twitter @joabi or Instagram @joabi961