Grocery inflation has hit a new peak and now stands at 13.9%, according to new figures from Kantar.
The data reveals grocery sales rose by 4.8% in the 12 weeks to 2 October 2022 as the cost-of-living crisis continues to hit consumers hard at the checkout.
The average household is facing a £643 jump in their annual grocery bill to £5,265 if they continue to buy the same items, Kantar data shows. Taking that at a basket level, that is an extra £3.04 on top of the cost of the average shopping trip last year which was £21.89.
The data shows sales of supermarket own-label lines increased by 8.1% in September, while branded items declined by 0.7%.
Fraser McKevitt, Head of Retail and Consumer Insight at Worldpanel Division, UK, said: “We are generally reluctant to change what we eat, so this is more about sticking to the food we know and love while hunting for cheaper alternatives like supermarkets’ own label goods. We are not seeing dramatic evidence of diets changing. For example, while frozen veg sales have gone up slightly, there has not been a big switch away from fresh products, which are still worth ten times more.”
He added: “Shoppers are also finding other ways to get the items they want for less. People are pretty savvy at seeking out best value and retailers are expanding their ranges to help them do this. We have seen grocers making a virtue of visually imperfect fruit and vegetables in recent years, allowing them to carry on offering the fresh products consumers want but at a cheaper price.”
In addition, the Kantar data suggests that the scale of price rises is trumping sustainability concerns for many consumers. The proportion of British shoppers who try to buy products with more environmentally-friendly packaging has slipped to 59%, down from 62% last year.
Currently 13.5% of all fruit and vegetables are bought loose rather than pre-packed, before the pandemic the level stood at 15%.
