Hundreds of popular grocery items have gone up in price by over 20% in the last two years as supermarkets scrap a number of budget ranges, according to a new study.
265 grocery products have seen prices sky rocket by more than a fifth of the original price. Which? also found that the amount popular discount deals and budget ranges in stores has fell.
The watchdog has compared the prices of over 21,000 items, comparing the average from the start to December 2021 to the end of February 2022 with the same period two years ago. Eight major UK supermarkets were analysed for the study, which shows consumers are more out of pocket now.
Read more: Food bank running out of food to help Liverpool families
Items included in the research were:
- Kellogg's Crunchy Nut Corn Flakes Cereal 500g- 21.4% increase at Tesco
- Asda's Own Label Closed Cup Mushroom- 21.4% increase at Asda
- Cathedral City Extra Mature Cheddar 350g- 21.1% increase at Ocado
The study, which spanned across 20 grocery categories, saw that fizzy drinks saw the biggest price inflation, rising by 5.9%, butters and spreads were close behind with increase of 4.9%. Energy drink prices rose by 4.8% and milk has gone up by 4.6%.
Chocolate saw the lowest inflation levels at 1.4% and biscuits were also quite low with a 1.8% increase. Fresh fruit and vegetables also only rose by 1.6% and 1.9%.
The study also found that there have been fewer discount deals and limited availability on brands own-label budget ranges that many people rely on. Products have also decreased in size but stayed the same price over this period.
Which?'s study found that even though the budget ranges have seen the lowest level of inflation at just 0.2%, they have become mush less available. These brands were unavailable on three times as many days during the most recent three month period in comparison to two years ago.
Own brand cheese was out of stock for 17 days in 2022, a sharp increase from the six days in 2019. The watchdog is now calling for supermarkets and manufacturers to provide clear unit pricing for east comparisons and to ensure budget items are available.
Sue Davies, Which? head of food policy and consumer rights, said: "Our research reveals that eye-watering price rises are being exacerbated by practices like shrinkflation and limited availability of all-important budget ranges - and these factors are combining to put huge pressure on household shopping budgets. During an unrelenting cost-of-living crisis, consumers should be able to easily choose the best value product for them without worrying about shrinkflation or whether their local store stocks budget ranges."
A Tesco spokesman said: "We are committed to providing great value for our customers, whether it's promising 'Low Everyday Prices' on 1,600 staples, price matching around 650 basics to Aldi prices, or offering exclusive deals and rewards through thousands of Clubcard prices." British Retail Consortium director of food and sustainability Andrew Opie said: "Rising inflation is a continued concern for both consumers and retailers.
"The global price of many food commodities has reached record highs over the last few months, pushing up prices for consumers. Other price pressures include increased energy, transport and labour costs, all of which are being exacerbated by the situation in Ukraine. Retailers will continue to do all they can to keep prices down and deliver value for their customers by limiting price rises and expanding their value ranges."
Receive newsletters with the latest news, sport and what's on updates from the Liverpool ECHO by signing up here
