The cost of making family favourite meals including spaghetti bolognese and Sunday roast has soared by up to 27% in the last 12 months.
New data from Which? analysed prices of almost 26,000 food and drink products at eight major supermarkets – Aldi, Asda, Lidl, Morrisons, Ocado, Sainsbury’s, Tesco and Waitrose.
Which? looked at the price of the ingredients needed to make popular dinners as part of its monthly inflation tracker.
The consumer group found the price of some essential ingredients had doubled in price.
Which? found the cost of making a pasta bake for four people has gone from £2.68 (67p per portion) in the three months to the end of May 2022 to £3.39 (85p per portion) for the same period 12 months later.
This marks an increase of 27%.
For families looking to cook fish fingers with chips and beans, the overall price has shot up from £3.06 (76p per portion) to £3.79 (95p per portion) - an increase of 24%.
Meanwhile, the cost of spaghetti bolognese went up from £5.53 on average (£1.38 per portion) to £6.63 (£1.65 per portion) - an extra 20%.
Finally, for the typical Sunday lunch of roast chicken, the increase was 13% for a family of four - rising from £6.43 (£1.61 per portion) to £7.28 (£1.82 per portion).
For the first time since February, overall inflation on food and drink fell below 17% to 16.5% in the one month to the end of May 2023.
Families who rely on supermarket own-label budget goods saw inflation on these goods rise from 25% in April to 26.6% in May.
By contrast regular own brands (19.1%), premium own brands (12.9%) and branded (13.2%) food and drink all slowed month on month.
The findings from Which? come as the Government continues to look at how supermarkets can help keep costs down for customers.
Sue Davies, Which? Head of Food Policy, said: “The cost of food during this period of economic uncertainty has turned the pleasure of mealtimes with loved ones into a nightmare for the millions that are struggling to afford food.
“Supermarkets must put their customers first by stocking budget lines in all of their stores, including convenience stores, to ensure easy access to basic, affordable food ranges as well as provide transparent pricing so people can easily work out which products offer the best value.
“Official Inflation data due out next week is still expected to show food prices at an elevated level, if supermarkets can’t do the right thing by their customers, it’s time for the government to take action.”
Products with the biggest percentage inflation over 12 months
- Sainsbury's - Sainsbury's French Fries 900g (83p to £1.75 - 110.29%)
- Lidl - Harvest Basket French Fries 1,000g (68p to £1.35 - 99.52%)
- Asda - HP Baked Beans in a Rich Tomato Sauce 415g (54p to 95p - 77.02%)
- Asda - Asda Frozen for Freshness Garden Peas 1kg (76p to £1.33 - 74.10%)
- Lidl - Newgate Baked Beans 4x420 1680g (99p to £1.72 - 73.37%)
- Lidl - Freshona British Garden Peas 900g (58p to 99p - 70.69%)
- Tesco - Napolina Chopped Tomatoes 400g (60p to £1 - 66.90%)
- Lidl - Ktc Plum Tomatoes Peeled 400g (39p to 65p - 66.67%)
- Tesco - Tesco Beef Mince 4% Fat 500g (£2.89 to £4.60 - 59.17%)
- Sainsbury's - Sainsbury's Omega 3 Fish Fingers x30 900g (£3 to £4.75 - 58.33%)
- Waitrose - Essential 10 Frozen Cod Fish Fingers MSC 300g (£1.90 to £2.95 - 55.32%)
- Lidl - Baresa Spaghetti 500g (54g to 82g - 50.37%)
- Asda - Asda Free From Spaghetti 500g (77p to £1.12 - 45.07%)
- Morrisons - Morrisons Free From Spaghetti 500g (83p to £1.19)
- Sainsbury's - Hubbard's Foodstore Spaghetti 1kg (40p to 57p - 42.44%)
- Lidl - Birchwood British Beef Mince 25% Fat 500g (£1.64 to £2.30 - 40.19%)
An Asda spokesperson said: "All supermarkets have been impacted by global inflationary pressures which has increased the price of key ingredients.
"We’re working hard to keep prices in check for customers and we remain the lowest-priced major supermarket - a position recognised by Which? in their regular monthly basket comparison, naming Asda as the cheapest supermarket for a big shop every month for the last three years."
A Lidl spokesperson said: “We’re committed to always offering our customers the best value and are proud that multiple independent price comparisons, including those conducted by Which?, continue to show that a basket of shopping at Lidl is consistently lower than at other supermarkets.”
A Morrisons spokesperson said: “This is an unprecedented period of inflation and we are working hard to keep prices down and competitive for our customers while maintaining high standards and availability in all our stores.
"This year we have announced a number of price cuts which have seen the prices of thousands of products lowered as we remain committed to doing all we can to help when it comes to the cost of grocery shopping.”
An Ocado spokesperson said: “At Ocado, everything we do starts with our customers and we know how important value is to them right now.
"We continue to support our customers by investing in price across branded and own-brand products."
A Waitrose spokesperson said: “No retailer is immune to inflation but we're working very hard with our suppliers to ensure we offer great value, while maintaining our industry-leading animal welfare standards and support for British farmers and suppliers.”
Tesco and Sainsbury’s declined to comment.
