Supermarket buyers have to pay up to 49 percent more for some foods, but a few items actually drop in price.
News broke yesterday that food prices are at their highest level in 45 years, with overall food prices rising 19.1 percent in the year to March.
But digging into the details of which foods rise and fall in price reveals some shocking — and surprising — findings.
Research into inflation rates from the Office for National Statistics also shows that the price of traditional budget food often rises much faster than that of premium products, making it even more difficult to save money on food.
For example, daily staples such as cheese and eggs have risen in price by more than 30 percent since last year.
Here’s everything you need to know about which foods cost you the most at the grocery store checkout that are still low — and what it means for budgets.
Rising prices: Food prices have risen at the fastest pace in 45 years, rising 19.1 percent in the year to March 2023
Which foods have increased in price the most?
Nearly every item in the basket of food controlled by the ONS has increased in price from last year, from milk, eggs and bread to frozen fish and potatoes.
The most notable increase was olive oil, which has risen in price by 49 percent since March last year.
This was followed by sugar, up 42 percent – reflected in the increased prices of Easter eggs and chocolate this year.
Milk — both low-fat and full-fat — has risen in price by nearly 40 percent since last year.
Which food prices are less steep – or falling?
Dessert apples and pears were among the only foods to fall in price over the course of the year, rather than up.
The price of the average kilo of dessert apples has fallen by 2 percent since last March, from £2.16 to £2.12.
Pears saw an even bigger price drop, namely a drop of 4 percent.
A kilo of pears bought in a supermarket last March cost you £2.24, whereas today you would pay £2.14.
Mushrooms were the vegetable least affected by food price inflation, rising just 6 percent since this time last year. They also fell in price by 1 percent last month
The foods with the lowest percentage increases in the past year include what the ONS calls “tubers and products from tubers,” such as sweet potatoes and turnips, which have increased in price by 2 percent.
Meanwhile, dried fruit and nut prices rose by 6 percent.
What do the rises in food prices mean for me?
The ONS data shows that food prices are rising almost across the board.
But price increases are strongest for people who traditionally choose cheap foods, and less severe for those who buy more expensive foods.
For example, the average container of ground beef – a cheap meat – has risen in price by 20 per cent since last year, with a kilo rising in price from £6.78 to £8.12.
Meanwhile, shoppers buying steak are facing lower price hikes — albeit from a higher starting point. Steak prices rose 10 percent, from £16.24 a kilo to £17.91.
Lamb, traditionally a premium meat, has risen in price by just 4 percent over the past year, from £15.56 to £16.14 per kilo.
But the pace of that increase is slowing, and lamb even saw a 1 percent price drop in March 2023 from February.
Even the UK’s most popular staple – cheap bread – is rising in price very quickly.
An 800g loaf of standard sliced white bread has increased in price by 21 per cent, from £1.14 to £1.38. Wholemeal bread has seen an even bigger increase, from £1.05 last year to £1.40 this year (33 per cent).
The average supermarket price for a dozen eggs has also increased by 28 per cent, from £2.47 to £3.17.
Your cup of tea will also be affected by these increases. The price of tea has risen by 14 percent since last year.
Combined with milk that is nearly 40 percent more expensive than last year, that all adds up to a premium cuppa.
Instant coffee has seen a more modest 8 percent price increase, from £3.07 to £3.32.
Commenting on the numbers, Alice Guy, head of pensions and savings at stockbroker Interactive Investor, said: “High food inflation is especially painful for poorer households that spend a higher proportion of their income on food.”
Many budget items rise in price faster, and the same applies to the prices in the cheap supermarkets Aldi and Lidl.
Overall annual food price inflation was 21.1 percent at Lidl and 20.8 percent at Aldi in December 2022. Which? recently found.
Asda saw the third highest price increase over the period at 15.4 per cent, followed by Waitrose (14.5 per cent), Sainsbury’s (13.75 per cent), Tesco (13.1 per cent), Morrisons (12.9 per cent) and Ocado (10.5 percent). cents).
Back to basics: the price of half a liter of milk has risen by 40 percent in the past year
When will food prices fall?
Hopefully within the next few months.
Helen Dickinson, CEO of the British Retail Consortium, explains that all these food price increases have happened because poor harvests in Europe and North Africa reduced availability and the weak pound made imports more expensive.
But she goes on to say she expects “food price inflation is likely to slow in the coming months as the growing season kicks off in the UK.”
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