Shoppers to swallow big price hikes

FOOD prices are going to rise soon and become permanently higher, according to the head of one of Britain’s biggest supermarket chains.

The warning comes even though the fierce price competition between Asda, Morrisons, Sainsbury’s and Tesco and German discounters Aldi and Lidl shows no sign of abating, in spite of supply chain chaos, worker shortages and higher commodities and delivery costs.

However the stores head – who declined to be named – said food producers and supermarkets will not be able to keep swallowing rising costs indefinitely and will soon have no choice but to pass them on to customers. “The era of food price deflation is over,” he said. “We will do our best to protect customers from price inflation but it will happen.

“Most people had to go out and work during the pandemic and so they’ve saved nothing, unlike the 15 per cent who could stay at home. They will be the hardest hit.”

It echoes the warning last month from Ranjit “The Chicken King” Boparan, the biggest poultry supplier to supermarkets, who said a “great food reset” was on its way, which will lead to higher prices and less choice.

Major grocery chains have all tried to reassure customers their supply chains are robust enough to ensure that there will not be any empty shelves in the run-up to Christmas.

At its interim results last week, Sainsbury’s chief executive Simon Roberts said he expects customers to really splash out this year, to make up for the fact that families were kept apart by the pandemic last year.