A spoonful of sugar... sweet if it’s two for the price of one

PRE-PANDEMIC, when face masks were still novelty items and the monthly gas bill cost less than a fortnight in Tenerife, I used to enjoy the ritual of the weekly shop.

Sitting down with a list, and possibly a cookery book, slowly gliding down the aisles in search of the right ingredients or an unexpected bargain, the satisfying feeling when you inspected your receipt at the till and realised you’d come in under budget.

Then came Covid and merely setting foot inside a supermarket felt like an epic and treacherous mission with two-metre rules, empty shelves and the endless, slow-moving queues.

Towards the end of the pandemic I shifted to home deliveries, and while I don’t miss taking an hour out of my week to push a wonky trolley around (never mind navigate those deeply frustrating self-service checkouts), there is one thing that has changed out of all recognition from those halcyon, pre-Covid days: the prices.

I noticed it this week in particular with the big shop as, in common with many Scots I imagine, we are planning a barbecue this weekend. Steaks are an eye-watering price. Burgers ain’t cheap either. Pack of chicken thighs? Best part of a fiver.

And, yes, I know I should be sourcing all my meat organically from farm to table and honestly I do try, but life is busy and time is short and sometimes, frankly, supermarkets are the only feasible option.

Which is why they’ve got so many of us over a barrel when it comes to prices, a serious concern during this seemingly-no-end-in-sight cost of living crisis which has seen food inflation rise to its highest point in 40 years.

And so I can’t help but be somewhat relieved by First Minister Humza Yousaf’s U-turn this week on junk food promotions and two-for-one deals, which will see ministers drop a push for legislation to outlaw the promotion of unhealthy food and drinks after a business backlash.

A ban on promotions of foods high in fat, salt or sugar could have forced up costs for customers buying products including cakes, crisps, cheese, biscuits, and, that well known daily staple for so many Scots (ahem), haggis.

It would have also restricted in-store advertising, prominent placement in shops and coupon discounts. Because at a time when people are struggling to put food on the table, never mind afford a treat, there is clearly no better time to restrict helpful coupons that make life that teensy bit easier.

Look, I’m not naïve. I am well aware – as unfortunately are vast swathes of the NHS – that there is an obesity problem in this country and that junk food is often part of the root cause.

But I am also acutely aware that right now, for the great majority of people who live in this country, life is hard. We are still adjusting to the post-pandemic landscape where the economy is as sullen as a teenager, mortgage rates are the highest they’ve been in decades and summer holidays are simply out of reach for many.

FOR most of us, junk food – that is, the odd bag of Doritos or popcorn to be shared during a family movie night, or a bag of sweets for the kids – are a treat, just like the barbecue many will be considering this weekend as the sun continues to beat down on us. Two-for-one deals are tempting but they’re also helpful, and save money.

You will recall that it was our former nanny-in-chief Nicola Sturgeon who wanted to press ahead with these measures – with as much ability to read the mood of the country as a woman who has spent the past three years living under a rock.

Going after the sorts of supermarket promos that most of us will occasionally indulge in for a grand occasion felt punitive, interfering and just plain mean. No Mary Poppins, Sturgeon always appeared hell-bent on taking away just about anything that makes life a little easier or more pleasurable.

Yousaf has many faults, but it would appear that he is not above taking the temperature on certain issues and, in the process, dismantling his predecessor’s legacy.

Thank goodness this government has realised that a spoonful of sugar really does help the cost of living crisis go down in ordinary working households.