Woolworths photo angers Australians | Daily Mail Online

The lingering suspicion Australians have that their main local supermarket is no longer the cheapest option for fresh staples has been proven resoundingly true.

Rising energy and fuel costs, plus sky-high interest rates and rising rents, have created a cost-of-living crisis, and it’s forcing ordinary Australians to stop and rethink assumptions about our most basic costs.

One of them, no doubt, is the entrenched belief, backed by advertising campaigns, that the big supermarket chains, like Coles and Woolworths, we better go to the supermarket for everything because it’s cheaper there anyway.

Daily Mail Australia bought a week’s worth of fruit, vegetables and eggs at Woolworths and Paddy’s Market in western Sydney, using an identical shopping list and buying the same weights, and the supermarket giant was nearly twice as expensive.

In a statement to Daily Mail Australia, the retail giant admitted it’s not cheaper, saying it was forced to pay more for most vegetables due to reduced supplies and bad weather.

‘It is well known that markets, where suppliers sell [food and other items] directly to consumers…it can cost less than a retailer,’ Woolworths said.

‘Currently, we are paying much more to our suppliers in the vegetable category. The main reason why prices for some varieties have risen is reduced supply in the market, following flooding on the East Coast and bad weather in key growing regions.

But just how much cheaper a market can be will surprise some people, though not all, as thousands of savvy Aussies are already using this valuable cost-of-living trick.

The same carload that cost $109.50 at Woolworths in Leichhardt on Friday, July 1, was just $59.75 at Paddy’s the same day.

The $49.75 price difference represented a 45 percent savings over the Woolworths haul, with the cheapest producer’s market on all but one of the 19 lines purchased.

The onions at Paddy’s were cheaper per pound, but at Woolworths they cost a little less because they weighed less.

A casual conversation with a family who shopped there showed that a $50 savings on a weekly visit is actually pretty standard.

Daniel Samate and Selu Vayvaka said they saved $60 each week shopping at Paddy’s.

Over a year, a weekly savings of $60 adds up to $3,120.

Every item Daily Mail Australia bought was cheaper per kilo from Paddy’s sellers than from Woolworths.

The most significant price differences were broccoli: $5kg at a Paddy’s stall vs. $9.90 at Woolworths; tomatoes: 4 kg vs. $9.90; ginger $8kg vs $50kg and avocados 85c each vs $1.40 each.

On the same day, a Sydney cafe owner who runs the popular Eugene’s in Bronte said even non-wholesale markets, where companies buy ingredients, are cheaper for consumers than major supermarkets.

Eugene Giesinger criticized major supermarkets for their prices and challenged people to support small local businesses.

Mr Giesinger told Daily Mail Australia that ten years of comparing prices for his business and shopping for his two children had shown him that even his local greengrocer on Belmore Road in Randwick is a cheaper option.

Paddy’s Market in Flemington is a huge venue that is home to up to 1,000 street vendors who are a mix of growers, retailers and other small businesses.

The Daily Mail Australia shopping list included a kilogram of apples, bananas, oranges, tangerines, tomatoes, cucumbers, potatoes, avocados, peppers and mushrooms.

It also included iceberg lettuce, eggs, onion, garlic, ginger, and lemon.

The shopping list did not include meat, dairy, packaged goods, junk food, laundry or bathroom items.

Realistically, it’s also possible to save even more: the city’s cheapest farmers’ market, Sydney Fresh, is only open on Saturdays, while Woolworths bill includes specials.

Daily Mail Australia isn’t suggesting Woolworths be more expensive on every line on sale at both outlets, just on the items we buy.

For example, chili peppers for sale at Paddy’s were up to $50 a kilogram with a vendor, but were between $15 and $30 a kilogram at Woolworths.

But Paddy’s vendors also stocked bath and laundry items that were noticeably cheaper.

Shopping at the markets was arguably a better experience as well.

While Woolworths is certainly more convenient – with 1,076 stores in Australia, there’s usually one within a 20-minute drive from most suburbs and it has online delivery – it can be frustrating.

On the day Daily Mail Australia visited Leichhardt Marketplace Woolworths, there were 15-minute queues around midday and the price tags were sometimes hard to understand.

By comparison, the market was bustling and vibrantly busy, with smiling, cheerful vendors interacting with families out shopping despite the wet weather.

In particular, vendors tended to be more generous than Woollies in addition to offering lower prices.

For example, when the Daily Mail ordered a kilo of apples, which cost $1.50 a kilo, the bag weighed approximately 1.15 kilos, but we were not charged any extra.

Vayvaka and Samate, both 31 with four children, told Daily Mail Australia that they drive from Campsie to do their weekly groceries at Paddy’s every Friday, estimating they save around $60.

“It’s much better,” Mr. Samate said. ‘My kids also like to eat fruit, instead of junk food.’

At Woolworths, retiree Tony, 66, said his weekly purchase of around $60 had shot up to $80 last month.

He lives alone.

‘I am a self-funded retiree, but I won’t be for long at this rate. Everything keeps going up.

You have resorted to buying products just before the expiration date expires, as those products are often on sale.

But he is determined to continue buying fresh food.