Corby’s surplus supermarket shows shoppers how to cut their grocery bills during the cost of living crisis

A supermarket in Corby shows shoppers how they can cut their weekly shopping bills during the cost of living crisis, by buying surplus produce that was previously destined to go to waste.

The Company Shop in Princewood Road held a fun day yesterday (May 12) where they invited people from across town to come and learn more about the benefits of surplus property.

Membership Director Terry Maree said: “Many of our members have been unable to reach us during the pandemic and with the cost of living going crazy we wanted to do a bit of a mess to let people know that we we are always there for them.”

The Company Shop group is the UK’s leading redistributor of surplus food and household products.

They offer their members surplus products from well-known brands.

Surplus products may be products with old packaging, damaged or manufacturing errors. Sometimes they are simply overloaded.

Company Shop buys these products that would otherwise be discarded and sells them to its members at discounted prices.

According to TO WRAP UP (Waste & Resources Action Programme), 1.3 billion tons of food are wasted worldwide every year. This represents a third of all food produced for human consumption, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). In the UK we throw away 6.6 million tonnes of household food waste a year in the UK, almost three quarters of this is food we could have eaten. (TO WRAP UP)

Company Shop Group is also known for its award-winning Community Shop.

Community Shop provides members with access to discounted food to help feed those on the edge of food poverty, as well as learning and development programs.

Terry said, “Our community centers have on-site mentors and kitchens who are there to educate and show people how to put pleasure into food.”

the Northants Telegraph took a look around The Company Shop yesterday to see what deals were available.

We filled a basket and for £15.08, including two shopping bags at 10p each, we were able to buy:

A box of Everyday Black Tea (50 sachets) (£1.50) A box of All in 1 Dishwasher tablet (45 tablets) (£2.25) A bottle of Fresh Fabric Conditioner (750ml) (£1.30) 12 Rosehip Yoghurt Drinks (12x100g) ) (£1.88) A box of Digestives (190g) (75p) A bottle of 3in1 Shower Gel (400ml) (60p) A sachet of Four Potatoes of 175g each (45p) A box of Plum Tomatoes (400g) (35p ) A sachet of Polish Farmhouse Sausage (100g) (50p) A bottle of Balsamic Vinegar (250ml) (75p) Three cans of Tuna (102g drained) (£1) A can of Minestrone Soup (400g) (25p) A piece of Stilton Blue Mature (220g) (95p) A packet of diced chicken breast (400g) (£2) A loaf of bread (800g) (35p)

You can never be sure what you are going to get in Company Shop because the stock changes frequently.

Terry said: “We’ve been described as sort of a dinner party lottery before and that’s the excitement of this one.

“People who come here may not know what they are going to eat that night. They might also feel more empowered to try something new that they normally wouldn’t because of the price.