Cheapest junk food costs more than fruit

HEALTHY food is mostly cheaper than junk food, making it “simply wrong” that cost is driving poor nutrition and obesity, according to a report.

The cheapest ready meals, pizzas, burgers and sugary breakfast cereals cost more than £2 per kilogram, whereas typical fruit and vegetables cost less than that amount, the study from the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA), based on data from Tesco and Asda, found.

The study compared the prices of 78 common food and drink products, finding that healthier options are mostly cheaper than less healthy alternatives when measured by edible weight rather than “flawed” cost-per-calorie methodology.

The IEA said the £1 cost of a cheeseburger would also buy a kilo of sweet potatoes, two kilos of carrots, two and a half kilos of pasta, 10 apples or seven bananas, claiming the recommended five portions of fruit and vegetables a day could cost as little as 30p.

It concluded that “ultimately price is not the main driver of unhealthy food consumption,” suggesting consumers were often prepared to pay more for taste and convenience.

Chris Snowdon, the report’s author and IEA’s head of lifestyle economics, said: “A diet of muesli, rice, white meat, fruit and vegetables is much cheaper than a diet of Coco Pops, ready meals, red meat, sugary drinks and fast food.”