Sainsbury's has claimed its Feed Your Family For £50 meal planner has boosted sales and driven traffic to its website.

The retailer launched the meal planner earlier this month, providing a list of ingredients and menu cards for a family of four for seven days 84 meals, including a Sunday roast.

As the second meal plan launched this week, Sainsbury's revealed that the website had received 300,000 hits in the first week alone. It added that sales of the items featured had risen both online and in store, although it did not divulge any figures.

"The campaign has got off to a great start," a spokeswoman said. "It has motivated consumers to think about how they conduct the family shop, and what they normally buy they're wasting less and saving lots."

Sainsbury's Facebook site has also been flooded with comments from shoppers about the scheme.

One poster said: "What a brilliant idea!! I'm on day three, and my son (18 years old, picky teenager) is loving all the recipes so far."

Another added: "Well done Sainsbury's. Thought it would be processed food, not what I would feed my family, but I was wrong. Keep it up."

However, others criticised the menu planner for only catering for a family of four, not taking into account dietary requirements and featuring too much bread. "Feed your family for £50 a week? What a joke," said one. "It is OK if you want your kids to have overload of carbs and want them eating frozen veg."