© Reuters. A shopper looks at fruits and vegetables inside an ALDI supermarket near Altrincham, Britain, February 20, 2023. REUTERS/Phil Noble/
By James Davey
LONDON (Reuters) – British consumer group which? The government urged action to support households when the competition watchdog publishes its review of grocery prices, saying some food prices have jumped as much as 175% since 2021.
Based on an analysis of over 21,000 food and drink products at market leader Tesco (OTC:), Sainsbury’s, Asda, Morrisons, Aldi, Lidl, Waitrose and Ocado (LON:), which is which? It found that supermarket prices increased by 25.8% between June 2021 and June 2023.
Food prices have risen due to increased costs of animal feed, fertilizer, and fuel as well as energy and labor costs. Poor harvests, bird flu, and a weak pound only exacerbated matters.
However, which one? She said her findings show that some supermarket products have experienced disproportionately high inflation.
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is set to update on competition and prices in the grocery sector this month. It has previously said it found no evidence of specific concerns.
“If competition issues are found, the CMA must be prepared to take appropriate action,” which is which? adding that Finance Minister Jeremy Hunt should also provide an update on his progress in agreeing measures with industry to ease pressure on consumers.
UK supermarkets have rejected claims that they have profited from the cost of living crisis.
Responding to Who?, the British Retail Consortium, which represents major supermarkets, said retailers had not passed on to consumers all of the cost pressures they faced.
“The hard work of retailers to absorb cost increases means the UK offers among the cheapest grocery prices in Europe,” said BRC chief executive Helen Dickinson.
She also noted that the prices of some basic foodstuffs, such as butter and bread, have begun to decline in recent weeks.
Governments across Europe are suffering from high rates of inflation. Last month, the French government secured a pledge from 75 food companies to lower prices for hundreds of products. Meanwhile, Hungary imposed mandatory price cuts.
While the UK government has raised concerns about rising food prices, it has said it is not considering imposing price caps.