Families hit after supermarkets hike 'budget' food prices by as much as 110% in just a year

Millions have traded down to value supermarket lines to save money

But these products have posted the biggest price hike over the past year

Supermarkets say despite price rises, products are as popular as ever

Families relying on supermarket budget ranges to make ends meet are suffering some of the steepest food price hikes, research reveals.
The big supermarket chains have increased the price of more than 40 per cent of their own-label budget lines in the past year.
And compared with items in other ranges, the mark-up is far higher – often more than 20 per cent.

Price hike: The big chain supermarkets have increased the price of more than 40 per cent of their own-label budget lines

Millions of families have traded down from branded food to value supermarket lines to save money.
This is good news for the supermarkets because the profit margin on such products is much better than on versions made by other manufacturers.

But it is exactly these products that have posted the biggest price rises in the past year, according to figures compiled by the price comparison and shopping website mySupermarket.co.uk.
A host of Tesco’s cheapest Everyday Value products have seen inflation-busting increases. For example, an Everyday Value pack of apples is up from 71p to 82p, which is 15.5 per cent hike, while a cauliflower is up 20 per cent to 90p.
An Everyday Value round lettuce is up 14 per cent to 57p, while there is a 15 per cent increase on tomatoes and a 25 per cent rise on a 200g pack of soft cheese.

Bargain hunters: Millions of families have traded down from branded food to value supermarket lines to save money

A 1kg bag of small potatoes from Asda’s budget range Smartprice is up by 17 per cent to 69p, while a 500g pack of tomatoes is up by 15 .4 per cent, to 90p. A Smartprice fresh chicken is up from £2.10 a kilo to £2.48, a rise of 18 per cent, while a pack of Smartprice bacon is up by 13.3 per cent to £1.70.
A similar pattern is seen with Sainsbury’s Basics range. A 230g pack of blue cheese is up nearly 15 per cent to £1.48, while a cheese and tomato pizza is up 50 per cent to £1.50. The cost of Basics digestive biscuits has increased by an astonishing 110 per cent.
According to retail analysts BrandView.co.uk, 153, or 43.3 per cent, of Tesco’s Everyday Value products cost more than the equivalent that was available a year ago.
Meanwhile, 137, or 41 per cent, of Sainsbury’s Basics products were more expensive.
Only Asda lowered more prices than it put up, with 73, or 29 per cent, up and 85 marked down.

Both Tesco and Sainsbury’s told The Grocer magazine that despite price rises, their budget ranges are as popular as ever.
A Tesco spokesman said: ‘Since its re-launch in April, nearly 80 per cent of our customers have bought from the Everyday Value range.’
She pointed out that the majority of Everyday Value products had stayed the same price or got cheaper but conceded ‘rising costs and food inflation mean some products have increased in price slightly’.
Sainsbury’s said it worked hard to keep prices low. A spokesman said: ‘Seventy-two per cent of our customers buy Basics and enjoy Sainsbury’s quality at surprising prices.’