Does anyone else feel like there has been another large increase in food prices lately?

YorksLass

Whilst I wouldn't say "large" price increases*, some items are still going up and cumulatively it can push up the bill.

I've also noticed that quite often my SM is out of stock of certain things - possibly because many people have changed to buying own brand or basics (in an effort to save money) and these are the things that seem to have attracted the biggest increases.

I agree discounts aren't as generous nowadays and shrinkflation doesn't help either.

I use a spreadsheet detailing prices for different categories of food stuffs and can see that all categories have gone up, with dairy, fresh meat and poultry being the biggest culprits.  I prefer fresh veg but I'm currently stocking up on tinned/frozen/dried as I think this will be in short supply/more expensive this winter. 

* Butter was the latest one this week, 20p on a 500g block.

Sarahspangles

catz4m8z said:

I tend to buy mostly fresh stuff and I think that goes up and down according to crop yields. I havent noticed a major difference in packaged stuff though.

I don’t notice a change in fruit and vegetable prices across the year. I assume the supermarkets average it out over the year. If they did adjust prices seasonally, people would have the option of buying in season and eating less expensively.

We get a veg box (I know we actually pay a premium for this) and the contents do reflect wholesale prices and availability. They change a lot seasonally if I choose the British veg option, quantities are also adjusted so the first of a new crop will be a small portion. We get heartily bored of kale before Winter ends. 

fatbelly

Remember butter freezes quite well. I think 2 blocks are £3.00 in Farm Foods if you want to get some in

Yes, fresh meat prices have drifted up. I used to have a 3/5/7 rule where I would buy pork/beef/lamb at £3/5/7 per kg. Looks like those days are long gone

retiredinfrance

Yes, I have noticed a small increase , but seasonal fruit and vegetables are much cheaper. However, there is a cunning plan in my local sm. One fruit is much cheaper and another one is much dearer- apples at 1. 79 a kilo  and grapes at 5.79 , euros. Not good is you love grapes!I watch these changes like a hawk as fresh stuff is never the same price each week up and down.

retiredinfrance

Of course, even if inflation has fallen to 2%, prices are still rising …..at2 %, so there will be a drift upwards. The bad weather hasn’t helped either. 

Nelliegrace

Aldi and Asda butter 250g went up 20p. Asda meat on offer 2 for £8 has gone down in quality, there is no plain meat now, it all has UPF stuff added.
Seasonal price increases in fruit and veg, especially blueberries, so we have frozen ones now.
Sainsbury’s have 3 for 2 on frozen fruit and veg. 

DH remembered to use his Co-op card and got the milk for £1.50 instead of £1.65 for 4 pints. With their prices he is not tempted to buy any extras.

elsien

fatbelly said:

Remember butter freezes quite well. I think 2 blocks are £3.00 in Farm Foods if you want to get some in

Yes, fresh meat prices have drifted up. I used to have a 3/5/7 rule where I would buy pork/beef/lamb at £3/5/7 per kg. Looks like those days are long gone

Farm foods blocks were smaller though when I went in. So the price per kilo was no different to buying it in Aldi. 

I’m expecting bigger increases in fresh veg and salad prices over the winter (more so than usual) because  the weather that farmers have been having here and abroad will impact on that. 

ChihiroSen

Thank you everyone for the insight.  I think I’m going to have to find other places to shop to try and reduce my bills. For fun I decided to do a comparative shop with what I ate at university 20 years ago.  (I ate the same things every day for a year, no meat) it was four times the cost, and still not nutritious. I don’t think the food prices are going to come down, and this is unsustainable for me so I imagine it is for the majority.

goldfinches

I agree with fatbelly and thriftwizard that butter has gone up quite a lot over the last few weeks and I've also noticed that some pack sizes have gone down from 250g to 200g as well. Has anyone else seen the K*rrygold stick of butter packs which are only 100g here whereas in the USA a stick of butter is 4oz/113g? 
The other things I've spotted are that the cheaper cheddars are no longer so cheap and that nuts have shot up, even peanuts are expensive now and the pack sizes for supermarket own brand cashews and pistachios have shrunk. Dried fruit is another problem as it seems to be impossible to source reliably any more and I think that might be because the UK is difficult and fiddly to supply nowadays.

badmemory

My son eats a fair amount of cheese, mostly cheese slices as they are easier.  Now just short of 50p a slice!  I see running out of cheese in our future.  Do not get me started on the price of prune juice.  From under a pound a couple of years ago to just short of £4 now.  Do they think we don't notice that £3.95 may as well be £4.  A bit like we are not expected to realise that petrol at 129.9 a litre is in reality £1.30.  I mean when did you last have 0.1p