grocery shopping for international students in waterloo, can we save some money?

 

One of the biggest challenges for international students in Canada is their monthly expenses; apart from rent, transportation, and phone utility charges, which are fixed costs, the only significant variable expense is grocery expenses; I believe every international student in Canada, when they first arrive have a hard time to control. Usually, groceries differ from person to person; for me, it is around 200 to 250 dollars on average, but one of my friends only spends around 100-120 on her groceries. And for international students, things could be better due to inflation and rising prices of everything from gas to food. So, what can we do to save some money on our groceries?

I currently reside in waterloo. Waterloo is expensive on par with Toronto; however, students can save a little money on groceries monthly in waterloo if they have good planning for what to buy from where.

There are many grocery stores of different sizes in the waterloo region, whether it is big grocery chains such as Walmart, Zehrs, or Sobeys or small independent shops owned by local owners. Instacart is another option. However, it is a bit more expensive than others. Only some supermarkets, such as Zehrs and Sobeys, have quality products, but they could be pricier. In comparison, stores such as Walmart and real superstores have lower prices. For me, fresco is my favorite; this store is entirely only for food products, unlike others with other sections such as apparel or pharmacy. These frescos have a massive selection of food items, even more, significant than others. Also, their international food selection is quite huge as well, and for an Indian person like me, I can often find a lot of Indian snacks in fresco. But the most significant thing about fresco is price; fresco offers one of the lowest prices in Kitchener and waterloo. Especially the meat and fresh vegetables are very cheap.

source:Matheus Cenali. (n.d.). Assorted-vegetable-lol. pexels.com. pexels. Retrieved February 16, 2023, from https://www.pexels.com/photo/assorted-vegetable-lot-2733918/.

Apart from big stores, we also have small, locally owned stores; I visit this Kiska halal store because it has so many spices and Indian products, which I can’t find anywhere around me. Also, there are other small stores around the waterloo region.

Another option is Instacart which is a great option when comes to convenience  and getting food at times of emergency such as snowy days and health problems. I used Instacart a lot of times previous year because I had a back injury and don’t have a car

Then is dollar stores such as dollar tree and Dollar Rama are some of  the best places in entire Ontario to buy small necessities ranging from bread to bulb, kitchen accessories to toilet paper.

Lastly a quick new tip for newcomers to waterloo region from other countries. You can download flipp(no sponsorship lol), it’s a great way to get know discounts around your local grocery stores(Broida, 2013). Almost every international have a tight budget when comes to grocery shopping however shopping efficiently from different places can help  a newcomer to save few dollars every week while shopping.