'Most expensive' supermarket charges 18% more for key grocery essential

1 week ago 4

A supermarket has been found to be selling a key grocery item for 18 per cent more than its competitors in a price comparison of basic goods.

The Manchester Evening News has been tracking the prices of the same eight items at the six main supermarkets since March 2022, including Aldi, Lidl, Asda, Tesco, Morrisons and Sainsbury's.

For the past six weeks in a row, Asda has emerged as the most expensive of them all, solidifying that position last week with a 13 per cent price increase on its chicken breasts and an overall bill of £12.78.

It maintains that position this week, with the price still standing at £2.65 for the 300g pack, which is 18 per cent more than almost every other supermarket is charging.

At Aldi, Lidl and Tesco the price is £2.25, while Sainsbury's 320g pack works out the same per gram.

Morrisons is pricier, costing £2.65 for 330g, which equates to £2.41 for the 300g, but it's still 24p less than Asda, reports the Manchester Evening News.

Aldi remains the cheapest this week, with a bill of £12.02 for the basket, which, besides the chicken, includes bread, milk, butter, tea bags, coffee, beans and mince.

Morrisons is the second cheapest at £12.11, followed by Sainsbury's - which has dropped the price of its coffee by a penny - at £12.40 and Tesco at £12.43.

Despite being ranked as the cheapest, Aldi has long disputed the comparison findings, arguing that they do not consider like-for-like products or 'the higher quality' of its products.

The supermarket giant has claimed that its beans are a substantial 20g heavier than those at Sainsbury's, and that Aldi's tea bags offer 'better quality than the comparative products used'.

Asda has voiced objections to the comparison, arguing that our limited selection of items doesn't reflect the broader pricing landscape or take into account their promotional offers.

They assert that its Just Essentials range is the most extensive and economical on the market, rivalling Aldi's offerings.

An Aldi representative said: "Our promise to customers is that they will make significant savings every time they shop with Aldi, which is why we've been named Which? Cheapest Supermarket of the Year for three years running. Which? has also named Aldi the UK's Cheapest Supermarket every month this year, even in its latest analysis including loyalty prices."