Family-favourite meals such as spaghetti bolognese, pasta bake, and fish fingers have soared in price over the last year, according to figures.
Consumer group Which? found that the price of pasta sauce, penne pasta, and cheddar cheese, which are often used to make a pasta bake for up to four people, jumped in price from £2.68 in the three months leading up to May last year to £3.39 for the same period this year, resulting in an increase of 27 per cent. The consumer group analysed almost 26,000 food and drink products in May across eight major supermarkets, including Aldi, Asda, Lidl, Morrisons, Ocado, Sainsbury's, Tesco, and Waitrose.
Meals such as fish fingers with chips and beans went from £3.06 to £3.79, an increase of 24 per cent. The cost was primarily driven by the rising price of baked beans, which increased by an average of 36 per cent, while HP Baked Beans in a Rich Tomato Sauce at Asda rose by 77 per cent, Wales Online reports.
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Meanwhile, the price of frozen chips increase by an average of 23 per cent, however Sainsbury's 900g own-brand French fries increased from 83p to £1.75 - a whopping increase of 110 per cent. Similarly, Lidl's Harvest Basket French Fries 900g went up by 88 per cent over the same period.
When examining the cost of ingredients for a standard home-made spaghetti bolognese recipe - such as beef mince, onion, carrots, stock, garlic, chopped tomatoes, dried spaghetti and olive oil - it went up from £5.53 to £6.63 - an average increase of 20 per cent across major supermarkets.
Key ingredients such as own-label beef mince 4% fat 500g rose from £2.89 at Tesco to £4.60, resulting in a 59 per cent increase.
Which? pointed out that the figures show how the rising cost of everyday ingredients have shown how difficult it's become for households to feed their families. 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.”
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