A number of protein shakes at Joe and the Juice are now more than £10 each in the latest sign soaring inflation continues to take its toll on Londoners’ pockets.
A ‘Red Supreme’ vegan protein shake with dates costs £10.20 at the firm’s central London stores, while its ‘Green Gains’ protein shake with spinach and banana costs £10.90. The company’s ‘Re-build’ and ‘Blue Magic’ vegan protein shakes are similarly priced when cacao nibs and hemp seeds are included in the order.
It follows an Evening Standard investigation which showed vegan shoppers face higher levels of inflation at the checkout than the average consumer making it harder to switch to plant-based foods.
An analysis of over 100 different vegan products at leading supermarkets Tesco, Asda and Iceland found prices have risen by an average of 18 per cent over the past year, significantly higher than the 14.6 per cent average grocery price inflation estimated by retail analytics firm Kantar over the same period.
Inflation rose to 10.4 per cent in February up from 10.1 per cent in January, figures from the Office for National Statistics show, in a surprise reversal of a recent downward trend. Chancellor Jeremy Hunt has said he expected the rate of inflation to fall below 3 per cent by the end of the year amid a cooling in energy prices.
Joe and the Juice did not respond to a request for comment. The Denmark-based company has 52 sites in London, according to its website, including stores in Kensington, Notting Hill and Mayfair.
Joe and the Juice customers can still get change from a £10 note if they opt for cheaper items on the drinks menu, including juices, ginger shots, coffee and bottled water.
In February, the firm agreed to spend $715,000 to improve diversity policies among its workforce after it was accused of failing to hire and promote enough women in the US, according to The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
The Copenhagen-based company, which has hundreds of sites around the world, said it “actively promotes gender equality” and had implemented a “more formalised recruitment process.”
