With prices continuing to rise in the United Kingdom during the cost of living crisis, shoppers have been shocked by the steep increase in one standard grocery item: Lurpak butter has been seen selling for more than £9 a pack.
In Iceland, a kilogram of Lurpak prices at £9.35, while at Sainsbury’s online, a 750g tub is listed at £7.25.
In Tesco, it costs £8.98 per kilo, and in Iceland, £5 for 500g, or £10 per kilo. Elsewhere, it costs £9.98 per kilo in Morrisons.
The lowest prices were Co-op, where it costs £7 per kilo, and Waitrose, where it’s £7.50 per kilo.
Despite the shocking prices, some consumers took to social media to poke fun at the astronomical Lurpak price tags. One said: “Lurpak has got very expensive £7.25 at Sainsbury’s!”
Another added: “Diabolical, cheaper to make your own.”
A third commented: “That’s disgusting, I’d never pay that, just to have jam on toast would cost over a tenner, no way.”
The record prices come as the country faces the highest inflation in over 40 years, currently standing at 9.1 per cent, the highest since February 1982, when it reached 10.2 per cent.
Arla Food’s chief commercial officer Peter Giortz-Carlson, whose company sells Lurpak, said he’d “never seen anything like it” during 20 years in the industry.
Speaking to Sky News, he said milk farmers are making a loss on farms due to the rising costs of fertiliser and fuel.
Simon Roberts, Sainsbury’s chief executive, said that the pressure will “only intensify over the remainder of the year”, adding he’d pledged to invest more money to improving value for shoppers.
He added: “We really understand how hard it is for millions of households right now and that’s why we are investing £500 million and doing everything we can to keep our prices low, especially on the products customers buy most often.”
Marc Gander, a spokesperson for The Consumer Action Group, said that while shoppers are right to be alarmed, “they had better stop being shocked because that’s the way it’s going”.
“But there are lots of other alternatives around including own brands which are very much cheaper,” he added. “It’s a mystery why Lurpak has to be nearly £10 a kilo when own brands are often about half of that amount.”
A spokesperson for Sainsbury’s added: “The price of products will be influenced by a range of factors, including manufacturer’s costs, and we are doing all we can to mitigate rising costs where we can.”
