Amid the cost-of-living crisis, the phrase 'every penny counts' has really hit home with millions of households trying to make savings anywhere they can across their food shops. Money saving expert Martin Lewis has suggested that downgrading a signature brand to a supermarket's own version of the cereal could save people plenty in their weekly shops.
A key example would be cereal, which is a staple in any kitchen cupboard. But the main question is: are they any good?
The Express has put this to the test, trying eight different supermarket's own version of popular cereal Weetabix, and compared each one to the main product. A 24-pack of Weetabix would set back a shopper £3.25, whilst some major supermarkets offer their own version for as low as 77p - how do they stack up?
Reporter Rebecca Miller was sent a pack of every supermarket's wheat biscuits and tried each with 100ml of semi-skimmed milk, and came to the following conclusions.
Weetabix - 24 pack for £3.25
The trademark original product arrived in fully recyclable packaging, with the cereal wrapper made of paper rather than plastic like every supermarket's own version. Each wheat biscuit is a whopping 13p, but the cost is telling as each has a nice crunch while not being too difficult to cup with a spoon.
Tesco Wheat Biscuits Cereal - 24 pack for £1.85
Tesco's offer was sweeter and crunchier than Weetabix, with the biscuit absorbing milk more quickly but not becoming dry as the flakes held the milk well. The only downside is that it was more expensive than its supermarket rivals - 8/10.
Asda Just Essentials Wheat Bisks - 24 pack for 77p
Asda is the only rectangle-shaped wheat biscuit on offer. It is thinner than others, but lighter in colour.
The texture is smoother and the flakes not as distinguished as they are softly blended together. It was difficult to cut through with a spoon, as in one case it flew out of the bowl and onto the floor.
At 3p-per-biscuit, its a great choice for those with a tighter budget, but there is no rush in eating them as they don't go mushy - 7/10.
Sainsbury’s Wheat Biscuits - 24 pack for £1.33
Thicker and crunchier than other biscuits, with a dense texture. The biscuit absorbed milk quickly and left it quite dry, but it held its shape well and didn’t go mushy despite the volume of milk it absorbed.
Cheaper than Tesco’s offering, but because they went slightly dry Sainsbury's gets - 8/10.
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Waitrose Essentials Wholewheat Biscuits - 24 pack for £1.95
When removing a biscuit from the packaging, it was very dusty. The biscuit itself was really light with a flaky texture, great flavour and held its shape well.
At just 8.1p per biscuit, I really enjoyed Waitrose's wheat biscuits - 8/10.
Morrisons Wheat Biscuits - 24 pack for £1.85
Easy to cut through with a spoon, nice and crunchy. Morrisons' is a pretty average wheat biscuit, nothing to like or dislike - 8/10.
M&S Wholegrain Wheat Bisks - 24 pack for £1.85
Overall the Marks & Spencer biscuit was less uniform in terms of shape and size, it was more organic, and a little wonky around the edges.
The biscuit absorbed the milk quickly. Despite many of the other biscuits being made with wholegrain, M&S’ wheat biscuit had a distinct wholegrain flavour which was really enjoyable - it tasted similar to shreddies.
A really tasty wheat biscuit in a beautifully designed box - 9/10.
Aldi Harvest Morn Wheat Bisks - 36 pack for £1.99
Aldi’s smallest pack of wheat biscuits is 36, so you get 12 biscuits more than other supermarket packets. After the milk was poured onto the biscuit, it quickly lost its shape and fell apart, going mushy. It also had a gritty texture in your mouth.
Whilst they cost just 5p per biscuit, the quality of the biscuit isn’t great - 4/10.
Lidl Crownfield Wheat Biscuits 36 pack - £1.89
Similarly to Aldi, Lidl offers customers a larger pack of wheat biscuits. Before being able to try the biscuit, it was a mission to open the box, the carboard flap at the top did not seamlessly open, in fact it ripped continuously. The biscuit absorbed milk really quickly and the biscuit went soft before turning mushy.
Slightly cheaper than Aldi per biscuit, but still not a great biscuit for breakfast - 4/10.
In summary, M&S were the tastiest, followed by Waitrose, Tesco and Sainsbury’s. Asda’s version is a great option but less luxurious. Every supermarket was deducted one point because they didn’t have paper packaging for the biscuits - if Weetabix can create paper packaging to keep their biscuits fresh, supermarkets can too for their own versions.
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