CMA launches grocery unit pricing review

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has launched review of the unit pricing practices online and in-store in the groceries sector.

Unit pricing shows how much a particular product costs by weight or volume, which helps people identify best value for money.

The competition regulator said the people shopping for food and other essential products need confidence that they have the right information to make great choices and are getting fair deals in the context of the rising cost of living.

The new review follows the 2015 Groceries Super-complaint where the CMA considered pricing and promotional practices in the groceries market and concluded that complexities and inconsistencies with unit pricing may prevent people from spotting which deal gives them the best value.

These included different interpretations of legibility of unit prices amongst retailers, inconsistencies with how retailers present unit prices for similar products and inconsistencies with how retailers present unit prices for products on promotion

“We know that the increased cost of living has hit the pound in people’s pockets. That’s why we’re pressing on with this important grocery unit pricing work to ensure shoppers can more easily compare prices and make choices that are right for them,” George Lusty, Senior Director for Consumer Protection at the CMA. said.

The project will consider the following:

1. if the unit pricing issues identified during the 2015 Super-complaint remain
2. compliance with the law by retailers
3. consumer awareness and use of unit pricing information

The CMA is expected to provide its view on these issues later this year.

Consumer body Which? has welcomed the review.

“Grocery prices are a huge concern as households all over the country grapple with the cost of living crisis, so it’s timely and important for the CMA to be looking at whether prices are clearly and fairly displayed at the supermarket,” Sue Davies, Which? head of food policy, said.

“We know poor, inconsistent and sometimes missing price information is a problem and that’s why Which? is campaigning for pricing transparency from supermarkets, so that shoppers can easily work out which products are the best value.”