Food Prices Skyrocket If Budget Options Dry Up, Warns Which?
Staple foods like rice, spaghetti, baked beans, and tea bags could cost shoppers more than three times the usual price when budget-friendly options vanish from shelves, a scathing new report from consumer watchdog Which? reveals. The group is now banging the drum for supermarkets to keep essential value ranges stocked, especially in convenience stores.
Massive Price Jumps at Major UK Supermarkets
Which? examined nearly 26,000 food and drink products across eight top UK supermarkets — Aldi, Asda, Lidl, Morrisons, Ocado, Sainsbury’s, Tesco, and 1 — in their August price check. They found jaw-dropping markups between budget brands, own-label ranges, and big-name branded goods, exposing a true cost-of-living sting for customers relying on smaller, local stores.
The shocker? At Asda, when budget rice “Just Essentials by Asda Long Grain Rice 1kg” was out of stock at 52p, the standard own-brand rice rocketed to £1.80 — a staggering 246% price hike. But that’s nothing compared to the branded “Ben’s Original Long Grain Rice 1kg” slamming shoppers with a whopping £4.85 price tag. That’s an eye-watering 833% increase over the budget rice.
Tesco’s store 1 showed a similar picture. Budget rice “Grower’s Harvest Long Grain Rice 1Kg” (52p) was nowhere to be found. The own-label “Tesco Easy Cook Long Grain Rice 1Kg” then soared by 140%, while “Ben’s Original Long Grain Rice 1Kg” hit £5.25 — a shocking 910% jump from budget prices. Sainsbury’s mirrored these brutal surges.
Price Hikes Hit Other Essentials Too
- Spaghetti: Sainsbury’s budget “Hubbard’s Foodstore Spaghetti 1kg” cost 56p, but the own-brand “Sainsbury’s Quick Cook Spaghetti 500g” was 75p for half the amount — a 168% price hike per 100g. The branded “Napolina Spaghetti 1kg” hit £2.50, 346% dearer than the budget version.
- Baked Beans: Morrisons’ budget “Savers Baked Beans 410g” was just 27p. The standard own-brand beans rose 78% to 48p, but pricey “Heinz Baked Beans 415g” peeled off a whopping 396% increase at £1.39.
- Tea Bags: Tesco’s budget “Stockwell & Co 80 Tea Bags 200g” cost 78p, yet the standard own-brand “Tesco 80 Teabags 250g” was £1.10 — a 41% uplift. The branded “Yorkshire 80 Teabags 250g” steeped shoppers for £3.30, 323% more than budget.
Convenience Stores Drive Prices Even Higher
The bite gets worse at convenience stores, where budget items are often missing, and prices for the same products are higher than in big supermarkets. Which?’s food inflation tracker shows grocery inflation hit 12.5% in August — down from earlier peaks but still painfully high. Official figures confirm food costs have overtaken household bills as inflation’s biggest headache.
Morrisons and Tesco have taken baby steps, stocking budget ranges in some Daily and Express stores, but Sainsbury’s and Asda lag behind with no major changes yet.
“As millions struggle with increased food prices and other high household bills, it’s staggering that shoppers face paying over three times more for items if they can’t get to a larger supermarket,”
Sue Davies, Head of Food Policy, Which?
Which? is urging all major supermarkets to ensure their convenience stores carry a solid range of essential budget items to help cash-strapped shoppers survive the cost-of-living crunch.
