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Get cheap Avios via the Nectar ‘Great Fruit & Veg Challenge’

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Yes, we’re in those dead days of August when there isn’t much real news to write about and we find we have too much time on our hands.

Which is how I came to look at the Nectar ‘Great Fruit & Veg Challenge’ and managed to get myself some cheap Avios ….

Great Fruit and Vegetable Challenge

If you open the Nectar app, you’ll see details of the Sainsbury’s ‘Great Fruit & Veg Challenge’. Running to 17th September, it aims to encourage you to buy more fruit and vegetables.

The challenge works best for people who never buy fruit and vegetables in Sainsbury’s, because you should have very soft targets.

You may, like me, have had a quick look at the challenge and written it off as being too difficult. You may be wrong. It looks trickier than it is.

This is what Rhys and I both have:

  • buy 10 portions of fruit and vegetables and get 500 Nectar points
  • buy another 10 portions of fruit and vegetables and get 500 Nectar points
  • buy another 10 portions of fruit and vegetables and get 500 Nectar points

…. for a total of 1,500 Nectar points.

1,500 Nectar points is worth:

  • 938 Avios
  • £7.50 to spend in Sainsbury’s or with another Nectar partner
  • almost (if you get to 1,600 points) four free coffees in Caffe Nero, worth at least £13

The key point is the definition of ‘portion’

Where I went wrong, when I initially saw this offer, is that I assumed a ‘portion’ was a packet of fruit or vegetables.

It isn’t.

A ‘portion’ is 80g of fruit or vegetables, excluding potatoes. There are some other niche exclusions but the main one is potatoes.

This means that, if your target is 30 portions, you only need to buy 2.5kg of fruit and vegetables.

I popped into the Sainsbury’s Local near our office and they had 500g bags of carrots reduced to 49p from 60p, so I bought five. My wife will be pleased.

Carrots appear to be the best ‘price to weight’ product that isn’t excluded, although this may change depending on what is on offer.

For a total spend of £2.45, I triggered the full 1,500 Nectar points in one go. We also get carrot soup for a couple of days, I suspect. The Nectar IT is surprisingly good and you will have the bonus points in your account within a couple of minutes of leaving the store.

Regular shoppers at Sainsbury’s seem to be getting very high targets, eg 600 portions. However, if you rarely visit, or rarely buy fruit and vegetables when you do, you may well get the ’30 portions for 1,500 Nectar points’ offer that seems to be the baseline.

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Category

British Airways and Avios, Sainsbury's and Nectar

Comments (92)

This article is closed to new comments. Feel free to ask your question in the HfP forums.

  • AJA says:
    14 Aug14 August 07:02

    Sour grapes here as my target is much harder than Rob’s. I have done 3 weekly shops and I am only 2/3 of the way to my first target having apparently bought over 7kg of fruit and veg so far. So no way i am going to get the full 1500NP.

    Double sour grapes as I also did not get the spend £3k and get 2000 Avios on my BAPP..

    As Froggee says “sad face”

    • Simon says:
      14 Aug14 August 08:07

      The sour grapes should be reduced for a quick sale and count towards the target??

  • BJ says:
    14 Aug14 August 07:14

    Buy them regularly, need 30 portions to get 250 points. I didn’t realuse people had different targets. Just cost them my business for a year, I stop buying and get them from local greengrocer in Stockbridge.

    Got 250 bonus for spebding £45 and paying with amex Nectar. Oddly this offer came as a notification only, not via amex offers or Nectar app. It has posted this morning directly with shop, no waiting up to 28 days.

    • Vit says:
      14 Aug14 August 08:06

      Stockbridge is nice. Like cafe around there a lot! 🙂

      • BJ says:
        14 Aug14 August 09:32

        Getting better all the time, every vacant ground floor premises seems to be opening up as something. Sadly the chains lije Starbucks are trying to muscle in too.

        • Axel says:
          14 Aug14 August 10:07

          The Coop in Stockbridge is the friendliest and best organised store in Edinburgh. The small Sainsbury Expresses are too pedestrian.

          Maybe Edinburgh HFP meetup should be in Stockbridge.

  • AL says:
    14 Aug14 August 07:29

    £7.35 for 968 Avios is bordering on not really worth it for me.

  • Tony says:
    14 Aug14 August 07:42

    What a load of bollx. You’ve got to buy paper bags in Sainsburys, expensive fruit…no thanks. Just go to Lidl/Aldi, cheap fruit and veg and pay on Amex…Avios!

    • Peter K says:
      14 Aug14 August 07:49

      Lidl/Aldi fruit and veg seems to go off (mouldy) very quickly from our local stores. If you want to do a shop for veg every 2 days then you’re fine. If not then go elsewhere.

      • Roosit says:
        14 Aug14 August 07:59

        I had that problem recently with strawberries a few times – but tbh the ones from Sainsbury’s went mouldy just as fast… Another reason to go to the local market instead.
        90 portions for 500 pts here btw

        • Rob says:
          14 Aug14 August 08:12

          Strawberries are £15 per box at our local market. They also do ‘seconds’ at £7.50 per box ….

      • BBbetter says:
        14 Aug14 August 10:36

        Isnt that what is healthy?

        Or would you like your fruit with chemicals that keep it fresh for longer?

        • Rob says:
          14 Aug14 August 11:01

          Do you know how fruit is stored these days? The apples you buy in the supermarket are usually 9-12 months old. Citrus fruit is usually 6 months old. Carrots can be 9 months old, potatoes can be 12 months old. Stick something in a room with reduced oxygen and you’d be surprised how long it can last.

  • Man of Kent says:
    14 Aug14 August 08:00

    I’d like to suggest an option is to use the offer to buy dried / tinned vegetables and then donate them to your local food bank if you are able to.

  • Chris says:
    14 Aug14 August 08:08

    Our target is 270 portions to earn £5 worth of Avios. Like a lot of companies Sainsbury treat regular customers like dirt.

  • Steve says:
    14 Aug14 August 08:15

    As an added bonus, you can save on your electricity bill as you should have incredible night vision by the end of the week (if not X-ray vision).

  • Crafty says:
    14 Aug14 August 08:17

    We almost never shop there. Buy 90 portions to get £1.25. Nope!

    • TGLoyalty says:
      14 Aug14 August 08:52

      Mine is buy 150 lol

      Though we buy about 50-60 a week regardless so it’s just a free 250 nectar before it runs out.

This article is closed to new comments. Feel free to ask your question in the HfP forums.

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