If you’re a porridge lover like me, be alarmed. If you like to sprinkle cheese on everything you eat, I’m sorry for what you’re about to read. You also might want to rethink having a slice of toast every morning.
Cheddar cheese, white bread, and porridge oats have soared a year ago according to latest inflation figures from Which?.
Overall inflation on food and drink at supermarkets continued to rise in March to 17.2%, up from 16.5% the month before, the watchdog found.
Cheddar cheese prices increased by a whopping 28.3% across eight major supermarkets – Aldi, Asda, Lidl, Morrisons, Ocado, Sainsbury’s, Tesco, and Waitrose – compared to a year ago.
However, one cheese, Dragon Welsh Mature Cheddar 180g at Asda, increased from £1 in the three months to the end of March last year to £1.80 across the same period this year – an 80% hike year on year.
How do you eat your porridge? With a bit of honey on top or perhaps with some blueberries? Whatever way you enjoy the breakfast staple, you might want to reduce your intake of oats. The cost of porridge oats went up by an average of 35.5% across all eight supermarkets compared to the same time last year.
The worst single example of inflation on porridge oats was at Ocado where Quaker Oat So Simple Protein Porridge Pot Original 49g went from 94p to a shocking £1.56 that’s an increase of 65.5%.
Thinking about having a slice of bread tomorrow morning? Well, a packet of large 800g loaves of sliced white bread saw an average increase of 22.8%, but The Bakery at Asda Soft White Medium Sliced Bread 800g increased by 67% from 56p to 94p.
It’s bad news for you if you’re a potato lover as the average inflation in white potatoes was around 14%, but a four-pack of baking potatoes at Morrisons increased from 40p to 66p – a rise of 63.5%.
Meanwhile, the price of pork sausages increased by an average of 26.8% across the supermarkets. However, Asda’s Just Essentials budget range of eight sausages increased in price by 73.5% from 81p to £1.40, while Tesco’s value Woodside Farms pack of eight went from 80p to £1.39, a 73.3% increase.
Which?’s tracker shows supermarket own-label budget items – which are still the cheapest overall – were up 24.8% in March compared with the same time last year, higher than the 20.5% increase seen on standard supermarket own brands and the 13.8% on branded and premium own brand ranges.
“Our latest supermarket food and drink tracker paints a bleak picture for the millions of households already skipping meals of how inflation is impacting prices on supermarket shelves, with the poorest once again feeling the brunt of the cost-of-living crisis,” Sue Davies, Which? head of food policy, said.
“While the whole food chain affects prices, supermarkets have the power to do more to support people who are struggling, including ensuring everyone has easy access to basic, affordable food ranges at a store near them, particularly in areas where people are most in need.”