Food inflation decelerated to 15.4% in May – down from 15.7% in April – but is the second-highest inflation rate in the food category on record, according to the latest BRC-NielsenIQ Shop Price Index.
The data shows fresh food inflation decelerated in May to 17.2% – down from 17.8% in April – is the second-highest inflation rate in the fresh food category on record.
Ambient food inflation accelerated to 13.1% in May, up from 12.9% in April, the fastest rate of increase in the ambient food category on record.
Meanwhile, overall shop price annual inflation accelerated to 9.0% in May, up slightly from 8.8% in April. This is above the three-month average rate of 8.9% and brings shop price growth to a fresh high.
Helen Dickinson, Chief Executive of the British Retail Consortium, said: “The slowdown in inflation was largely driven by lower energy and commodity costs starting to filter through to lower prices of some staples including butter, milk, fruit and fish. Conversely, the price of chocolate and coffee rose off the back of the ongoing high global costs for these commodities.”
She added: “Fierce competition between supermarkets has helped keep British food among the cheapest of the large European economies. While there is reason to believe that food inflation might be peaking, it is vital that government does not hamper this early progress by piling more costs onto retailers and forcing up the cost of goods even further. The biggest risk comes from policies such as the incoming border checks and reforms to packaging recycling fees.”
Mike Watkins, Head of Retailer and Business Insight, NielsenIQ, said: “To help mitigate the impact of inflation, shoppers are saving money by looking for seasonal promotions on the high street and taking advantage of the price reductions offered by supermarket loyalty schemes.
“Food retailing in particular is competitive, so hopefully the recent price cuts in fresh foods is a sign that inflation has now peaked, albeit ambient inflation may take a little while longer to slow.”
