German grocery Aldi has further cemented its spot as an Australian favourite, taking out top spot in a national survey of shoppers in the hotly contested national supermarket war.
It is the fifth year in a row that Aldi has topped the Canstar Blue ratings for Australian supermarkets.
The discount chain also took out the title for its fruit and vegetable selection, for the second consecutive year.
Australian shoppers gave Aldi a perfect five-star score for its fresh produce across the board – the only supermarket to achieve the rating.
Canstar Blue home and lifestyle editor Megan Birot said Aldi and its growers should be proud of their win:
“Having secured the top results in our supermarket satisfaction ratings 2022 for a fifth consecutive year, it’s no surprise Aldi have once again been rated No.1 in our supermarket fruit and vegetable awards 2022,” she said.
“Given the supply challenges supermarkets and fresh produce growers have faced over the past year, these results are something Aldi and its suppliers should be incredibly proud of.”
In Melbourne, semi-retired economist Chris Wilcox backed the results. He said he had shopped at the German retailer “on and off for the last couple of years” because of its weekly specials and bargain prices.
“I’m here to get a couple of things that were on the weekly specials last week … and some of the basics, which are cheaper than anywhere else,” Mr Wilcox said on Monday.
“I’m not too fussed about the quality necessarily [but] we are very happy with the basics that we buy here – they’re very good.”
Aldi claims its fresh produce is 18 per cent more affordable than similar goods at its competitors.
Group buying director of fruit and vegetables Jordan Lack said it was “incredibly rewarding” to have the supermarkets’ fruit and vegetables rated No.1 by shoppers.
“To know shoppers are extremely satisfied with the value, variety and freshness of our fruit and vegetable options is equally a credit to our grower partners who have worked tirelessly with us this year, throughout all its challenges, to bring only the best to our customers,” Mr Lack said.
“We take a lot of pride in our partnerships with local fruit and vegetable producers – with 97 per cent of our fresh fruit and vegetables coming directly from hundreds of Aussie farmers and growers.”
Jeremy Haw from Hussey & Co provides fresh greens such as spinach, rocket and salad leaf mix to Aldi supermarkets.
“When I walk into an Aldi and see our spinach in the chiller, it still gets me that Aussies across the country are making salads, or soups or some other creation with the baby spinach we grow on our farms,” he said.
“We are super proud to be an Aldi grower and hope to continue bringing award-winning produce to Aldi shoppers for years to come.”
Tomato grower Chris Millis from Victoria’s Flavorite grows almost three million kilograms a year of premium truss tomatoes for the retailer.
“Aldi’s support has been incredible and has been felt during these challenging times for growers,” Mr Millis said.
“Their experienced and approachable team gave us the confidence to expand our glasshouse footprint over the course of our partnership, diversify our product portfolio and introduce new healthy snacking products to Aldi shoppers.”
