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UK food inflation hits record high of 14.7% and likely to increase further, says Kantar

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2 min read
AUTHOR: Stef Bottinelli
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Shopping baskets filled with food on top of a stack of coins

UK food inflation is now at 14.7%, hitting a record high since Kantar started tracking prices in 2008, the data analytics company said.

According to the latest figures, the sales of take-home grocery went up by 5.2% in the 12 weeks to 30 October 2022, the fastest growth since April 2021.

Consumers bills could go up £682 annually unless they switch to cheaper items and brands.

In a bid to lower bills, shoppers have been purchasing more own label goods, which have gone by in sales by 10.3%. The sales of cheapest items in the own label category have gone up by a whopping 42%, whilst branded items have had a slower sales increase, up by only 0.4%.

Consumers are feeling the pinch with over a quarter (27%) admitting that they are struggling financially. This has had an impact on sales of certain goods such as confectionary, which was down 10% compared to the previous year, however this could be due to the new HFSS regulations, which limits the location of foods high in fat, sugar and salt.

Christmas spend is also being affected, with shoppers preferring to wait to start buying food for the holidays. “This time last year two million consumers had already bought their festive Christmas pudding,” Kantar says. “We’ve seen 32% fewer shoppers doing that this time around, suggesting people are not trying to spread the cost of their purchasing – at least not in October.”
However, the World Cup, which kicks off in Qatar on 20 November, could see the sales of beer and food to be consumed at home go up.

Kantar said that discount supermarkets have seen the biggest growth year on year. Aldi’s sales are up 22.7%, holding a 9.2% market share, whilst Lidl’s 21.5% with 7.2% share of the market. A record for the German retailer.

“Asda again led the traditional ‘Big Four’ with sales growing by 5.3%, maintaining an overall market share of 14.3%. Meanwhile, sales at Sainsbury’s increased by 3.3% with its market share now at 14.9%. The largest retailer Tesco had a 27.0% share and saw sales grow by 3.1%. Morrisons’ market share is now 9.0%,” Kantar found. “Iceland grew slightly ahead of the market, with sales increasing by 5.3%. Co-op’s sales rose by 3.3%, while Waitrose’s sales dipped by 1.9%. Online retailer Ocado held sales flat versus last year and it has a 1.6% share of the market.”

Could the quality of food in Britain be at risk? Learn more in this podcast:

How post-Brexit trade deals could affect UK food standards

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