We're constantly being told that fresh food is the best option for us. However, there are many benefits of eating frozen produce, particularly where waste is concerned. Celebrity chefs may have plenty of time to pick lettuce and carrots from their garden, but most people simply don't have that luxury.

According to financial expert and TV presenter Cesarina Holm-Kander, frozen food is just as nutritious as fresh in many cases. She notes that a lot of families are wasting considerable amounts of food every week by throwing out fruit and vegetables they haven't got round to eating. Let's face it, very few of us get through all of the broccoli, carrots and potatoes we pile into our shopping trolleys every week.

"Thirty per cent of people are wasting food, which is literally throwing food straight in the bin. You might as well cut out the middle man and put cash straight in the bin," she comments. "If you buy fresh veg or fresh fish it has a really short lifespan in which to use it. Even with the vegetables which may look okay, you may have lost a lot of the taste and nutritional values by the time you get around to cooking them."

Cesarina believes there is a lot of misinformation regarding frozen food - even a little snobbery. She points out that in a recent study by Manchester Metropolitan University, most people thought frozen produce tasted the same - if not better - than fresh goods.

Almost everything can be put in the freezer. There are a wide range of products out there, so you should not have to compromise as far as choice is concerned, she adds. If you're planning to freeze leftover meals, then just make sure you label them properly and include the date on which they were prepared.

Remember - fresh food can take up to 14 days to reach the shops and even longer to get on to your plate. For example, spinach loses around 75 per cent of its vitamin C content within two days of picking. However, it drops by just 20 per cent when the vegetable is frozen.