Food inflation climbed to 3.9 per cent in January, compared with 3.3 per cent in December, moving above the three-month average of 3.4 per cent, giving a push to overall inflation, shows the figures released by British Retail Consortium (BRC) today (Jan 27).
Within this, fresh food inflation rose to 4.4 per cent year on year, up from 3.8 per cent, while ambient food inflation increased to 3.1 per cent, from 2.5 per cent in December. Both categories are now running ahead of their recent three-month averages.
The figures point to renewed pressure on household grocery bills at the start of the year, with staples such as meat, fish and fruit among the most affected categories, reflecting a combination of weaker supply and stronger demand.
Overall, shop price inflation accelerated to 1.5 per cent year on year in January, up from 0.7 per cent in December, according to the latest data, driven primarily by rising food prices.
Commenting on the numbers, Helen Dickinson, Chief Executive of the BRC, said, “Any suggestion that inflation has peaked is simply not borne out by these figures.
"Shop price inflation jumped this month due to high business energy costs and the hike to National Insurance continuing to feed through to prices. Meat, fish and fruit were particularly affected, also reflecting weak supply and stronger demand, while non-food categories, including furniture, flooring, and health and beauty, all saw inflation rise.
“It is a challenging time for households. Retailers do what they can to keep prices down in a competitive market, but thin margins and rising costs of Government policy make it harder.
"Government must double down on costs in order to support households. A good place to look is the spiralling energy charges, especially non commodity levies, which are raising operating costs, squeezing margins and flowing through into retail prices.”
Mike Watkins, Head of Retailer and Business Insight, NIQ, added, “Shoppers are always cautious about spending in January and this will not be helped by the continuation of inflation.
"However, there are still savings to be made at the checkout as some non-food retailers are still on promotion and many food retailers continue to reduce prices on everyday items as a way to drive footfall.”