Food prices soared due to lorry driver shortages

Prices rose most in savoury snacks and canned pop drinks

Author: Rory GannonPublished 10th Nov 2021

The cost of food in supermarkets has seen its highest increase in months, as a result of the shortage of lorry drivers.

Supply chain disruptions triggered a 2.1% rise in the prices of groceries in October - the highest since August 2020.

New research from data analysis company Kantar revealed that crisps, savoury snacks and canned pop drinks saw the greatest increase in prices. However, supermarket sales were still higher than in 2019, before the pandemic struck.

It comes as the UK continues to deal with rising prices in gas and fuel, which are increasing the cost of living sharply.

As well as this, disruption to global supply chains are due to increase the cost of food further, after the Bank of England warned that the rate of inflation could rise to its highest level in 10 years.

Kantar also discovered that shoppers were making 40 million fewer trips to the supermarket. Instead, patrons were choosing to spend more in the fewer times they visited.

Head of Retail and Consumer Insight at Kantar, Fraser McKevitt said: "As prices increase in certain categories, we can expect shoppers to continue to visit several supermarkets and shop around to find the best deals."

Mr McKevitt also noted how online grocery deliveries were becoming more common, with one fifth of consumers becoming "long-term converts", even after results have been lifted.

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