Berries replace cigarettes in inflation basket

SUPERKING cigarettes have been ditched from Britain’s inflation basket in favour of frozen berries and e-bikes as the nation becomes more health conscious.

New additions to the Office for National Statistics (ONS) “shopping basket”, which is used to compile measures of inflation, include green beans and dairy-free spreads and margarines, reflecting the growth in veganism.

Alcopops, lamb shoulders, vending machine cans of soft drinks and extra large cigarettes have all been dropped. These items are no longer popular enough to be considered relevant in the ONS’S inflation calculations.

The allocation for red wine has been slimmed down as it had become “over-represented”, the ONS said. Previously, it measured the prices of both New World and European red wines. These have been replaced by a single “red wine” price category.

The addition of frozen berries is the first time that frozen fruit has been included.

“Expenditure is growing in this area due to greater health awareness and the popularity of home-made food and smoothies,” the ONS said. There was, however, one fruit that has been excluded from the nation’s shopping basket: cooking apples are no longer in vogue.

Battery-powered e-bikes have also been added to the vehicles section, following rapid growth in sales since 2017. This was likely for environmental and fitness reasons, as well as the rising cost of other forms of transport, the ONS said.

The shopping basket is revised each year so that the items are representative of consumer spending patterns.

Wraps and tortillas were added to the breads and cereals category as meals such as fajitas became more popular.

Surveillance cameras have been added to the electrical appliances list to reflect a rise in the use of video doorbells and security cameras.

The increase in streaming services has brought the death of DVDS and CDS. The ONS no longer tracks nonfilm DVDS and non-chart CDS sold in shops, although it still includes those sold online.

The ONS has also dropped tampons from the inflation basket, saying sanitary towels “attract greater expenditure and are currently more representative of feminine hygiene products.”