Grocery prices soar across Australia, with one major retailer jumping 11 per cent

A grocery price analysis by consumer advocacy group Choice has confirmed what Australian shoppers are already feeling at the checkout: the cost of food is still climbing.

In its most recent analysis, Choice compared the prices of a basket of grocery items at Coles, Woolworths, Aldi and IGA, clocking price increases across the board since its last survey results were released in June.

And in a recent Consumer Pulse survey, 82 per cent of respondents said they were concerned about the cost of food and groceries and were feeling the pressure on household budgets.

The largest increase was at IGA where the price of a basket of eight items rose by 11 per cent, jumping in cost to $50.42 from $45.42 in June.

“While Aldi’s basket was still the cheapest of the four stores we surveyed, they did have the second biggest increase, with their base basket costing $40.10 – an upswing of 8 per cent or $2.96,” Choice chief executive Monique Perry said.

“Coles followed with an increase of 6 per cent or $2.44, and the Woolworths base basket increased by 2 per cent or $0.87.”

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The cost analysis was based on a basket of eight items without specials: apples, bananas, strawberries, potatoes, avocado, milk, basmati rice and beef mince. Prices were analysed by a team of fieldworkers who visited 104 supermarkets across 27 locations in Australia.

Overall, the cost of the average base basket without specials across all four supermarkets increased by $2.79 or 7 per cent compared to March, with the conflict in the Middle East and subsequent impact on fuel prices noted as likely contributing to price pressures.

The increase was largely driven by strawberries, which accounted for about half of the price increase, Choice explained. There were also higher prices on average for mince, milk and avocados, while lower apple and rice prices were recorded when compared to the previous wave.

Difficult weather conditions forecast for growing regions over the next few months has added to concerns over food prices.

In a report released on Tuesday, the Climate Impact Lab warned of a “super” El Niño, with NSW expected to be the worst affected state, followed by Western Australia, Queensland, Victoria, and South Australia.

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This means lower than average rainfall and higher temperatures for farmers.

“The anomalously warm temperatures that most of the globe will see during this El Niño event are a ‘postcard from the future’; while they feel anomalous now, they will become normal just a few decades into the future,” the authors wrote.

Choice advised Australians to continue to shop around when completing their weekly grocery run.

“What our findings continue to highlight is that small changes add up to significant savings, particularly over the course of the year,” they said.

“Switching between stores and shopping at different supermarkets to take advantage of specials can deliver significant savings,” Choice said.

They added that shoppers should continue to check unit pricing for accurate cost comparisons, swapping expensive cuts of meat for cheaper alternatives, looking for frozen fruit and vegetables for produce out of season, and trying out supermarket home brands.