If economy and health concerns put you off high street sandwiches, you could find inspiration for making your own tasty fakeaways in new book Sandwiches, Panini and Wraps.

Cash-strapped workers are shunning shop-bought sandwiches and making their own packed lunch, a leading supermarket said today.

Shoppers trying to survive the credit crunch are also spending less on takeaways and making home-made "fakeaways" of their favourite dishes, according to Sainsbury's.

The supermarket chain said sales of plastic lunch boxes have shot up by more than a third (36%) in the past month and sandwich bag sales have also risen by a quarter (25%).

Alison Austin, head of sustainability at Sainsbury’s, said: "Fakeaways are here to stay. They’re created for a fraction of the cost of traditional takeaways, you know what’s going into them and they use up food that would otherwise be chucked out and sent to landfill."

Alison continued: "A staggering third of all the food we buy is thrown out, according to recent research, so what tastier way is there to tackle an environmental problem and save a lot of money? Leftover vegetables and meat are ideal ingredients for curries, and pizzas lend themselves to a huge range of toppings. Cooking fakeaways at home is great fun and is the perfect way to love your leftovers."