Cost of some everyday groceries has more than doubled in a year

The price of some everyday groceries has more than doubled over the past year as the cost of own-brand items continues to rise, according to the latest findings from the Which? food and drink inflation tracker. 

We've analysed inflation on more than 25,000 food and drink products at eight major supermarkets – Aldi, Asda, Lidl, Morrisons, Ocado, Sainsbury’s, Tesco and Waitrose – to see how everyday product prices are being affected.

Here, we reveal the items that have seen the biggest percentage price rises in a year and how grocery inflation is changing.

Which groceries have risen the most in price?

The analysis covered the average price of the products in the three months to the end of February 2023 compared with the same time period last year.

Our tracker has allowed us to pinpoint the items with the highest inflation at each supermarket to find which products have seen the biggest percentage price rises. 

The items from each supermarket where the average price has risen the most in a year were:

• Asda’s Free From Special Flakes (300g) went from 62p to £1.43 (129%) 
• Waitrose’s Essential Italian Mozzarella Strength 1 (drained 150g) went from 80p to £1.77 (121%)
• Morrison’s Free From Corn Flakes (300g) went from 60p to £1.29 (115%).
• Sainsbury’s Hubbard'’ Foodstore Water (2L) went from 17p to 35p (106%)
• Tesco’s Creamfields French Brie (200G) went from 82p to £1.65 (103%)
• Lidl’s Chene D’argent Camembert (250g) went from 99p to £2 (102%) 
• Cadbury Milk Tray Chocolate Box (360g) at Ocado went from £4.21 to £7.81 (86%)
• Aldi’s Belmont Ginger Nuts went from 26p to 47p (81%)

We found a range of everyday items in each supermarket’s list of groceries with the highest inflation, including milk, meat and fruit. Own-brand products were particularly hard-hit and featured heavily in most supermarkets’ lists, apart from Ocado which only included branded items. 

This reflects the trackers’ findings that overall, budget (22.9%) and own-brand (19.7%) items were again subject to higher rates of inflation than premium (13.8%) and branded counterparts (13.3%). 

• Find out more: how to spend less at the supermarket

How high is grocery inflation overall?

The tracker shows the annual inflation of popular food and drink was at 16.5% overall in the one month to the end of February, across the eight retailers. 

While the inflation rates have dropped slightly among some high inflation categories – such as butters and spreads, which dropped from 29.9% last month to 26.1% this month – it has risen across other essential categories. For example, inflation on vegetables rose from 11.6% to 13% , juice drinks and smoothies went from 13.4% to 15.1%, and cereals increased from 13.4% to 14.6%. 

When Which? looked at inflation by supermarket it found that while the discounters remain generally cheaper than bigger rivals, it seems they have less room for flexibility when it comes to passing costs on to customers. 

The tracker shows prices were rising the fastest at Lidl - with Aldi close behind. 

It's important to remember inflation is a measure of how quickly prices are rising or falling and not of absolute price. Aldi and Lidl are still regularly the cheapest in our monthly supermarket price comparison. 

What should supermarkets do? 

Which? is campaigning for all supermarkets to ensure that budget line items, which enable an affordable and healthy diet, are widely available, particularly in areas where people are most in need. 

They must also make pricing and offers more transparent so that people can easily work out which products are the best value. Alongside the University of Leeds Consumer Data Research Centre, Which? has developed the Priority Places for Food Index. which shows where in the UK people are the most vulnerable to food insecurity. 

So far, more than 68,000 people have signed our petition calling on the supermarkets to take action. 

Do you want to see your supermarket take action to support you through the cost of living crisis? Sign our Affordable Food for All petition

About the Which? supermarket food and drink inflation tracker 

We launched our monthly tracker last December. It tracks tens of thousands of products across eight major supermarkets. The tracker shows rates of inflation overall, as well as by supermarket, product category and range. 

Which? publishes this data each month in order to showcase how inflation is really hitting customers and put pressure on the supermarkets to do a better job of supporting customers to keep food on the table during the worst cost of living crisis in more than 40 years. Inflation is a measure of how quickly prices are rising or falling and not of absolute price – so the supermarkets with the highest inflation may also be the cheapest. 

The tracker looks at 20 popular categories of food and drink at eight supermarkets — Aldi, Asda, Lidl, Morrisons, Ocado, Sainsbury’s, Tesco and Waitrose. It compares average prices across the same one-month periods year-on-year, including discounts, but not multibuys or loyalty card offers. Figures are then weighted based on supermarket market share and the sales volume of each product category.

To see how these high levels of inflation on value ranges are affecting specific products on supermarket shelves Which? also looks at a three-month average – in this case from December 2022 to February 2023 – and compares it year-on-year. While some minor price variation may exist due to different prices at different stores across the country and sampling techniques, Which? is confident that this is unlikely to impact overall averages and inflation figures.

• Find out more: what's happening to supermarket food prices?

What do the supermarkets say?

Every month, we offer supermarkets the opportunity to comment on their own products with the highest inflation. Lidl has disputed these this month, but has failed to say what the inaccuracies are.

Aldi declined to comment. 

Asda told us: 'We’re working hard to keep prices in check for customers despite global inflationary pressures and we remain the lowest-priced major supermarket – a position recognised by Which? in their regular monthly basket comparison, which has named Asda as the cheapest supermarket for a big shop every month for the past three years. We recently announced we would be freezing the prices of more than 500 popular branded and own-label products – more than half of which are fresh meat, dairy, fruit and vegetable products – until the end of May.'

Lidl said: 'We are extremely concerned that since the launch of this "tracker", Which? has consistently chosen to publish information that we, and other retailers, have confirmed to be incorrect. This includes data for products that we do not even sell.'

Morrisons told us: 'This is an unprecedented period of inflation and we are working hard to keep prices down and competitive for our customers, while maintaining high standards and availability in all our stores. We recently reduced the price of 1,000 popular products and remain committed to doing all we can to help when it comes to the cost of grocery shopping. Our Morrisons Easter Collector scheme is also now live for eligible My Morrisons members enabling them to receive a significant money-off voucher to spend at Easter if they meet the criteria and shop in the relevant weeks.'

Ocado said: 'At Ocado, everything we do starts with our customers and we know how important value is to them right now. We continue to support our customers by investing in price across branded and own-brand products. We've also recently introduced the Ocado Price Promise, so customers can be sure they’re getting great value.'

Which? approached Sainsbury’s and Tesco for comment, and hadn’t received a reply at the time of publication. 

Waitrose told us: 'Although no retailer is immune to inflation, particularly with dairy products comprising the majority of this basket, we've been working hard to keep prices as affordable as possible for our customers – and have already committed a record £100m to lower the prices on hundreds of everyday staples.'

• Find out more: what supermarkets are doing to help with the cost of living