Price rise news is everywhere you look, but increases have the biggest impact on those who can least afford them. How are rising prices affecting you?
For a decade I’ve relied on the McDonald’s Wrap of the Day as a £1.99 ‘meal of last resort’. People may (and do) mock that I know exactly how many slices of cucumber are in the Sweet Chilli wrap (three, much to my chagrin).
But the wrap is to me one of those rare things, a true constant: always the same price. Such examples of 0% inflation are a long way from ‘real’ inflation as measured by the Consumer Price Index (CPI). This is at its highest for 30 years (5.4%) and set to rise further.
Which groceries have inflation-busting price rises?
Rocketing prices of the cheapest foods
CPI is based on the price of a basket of goods that’s supposed to be a microcosm of the nation’s buying habits. But how representative is it when it contains cigars, liver, coal and even private school fees?
In February, anti-poverty campaigner Jack Monroe scorned headline inflation figures by highlighting the rocketing price of the cheapest foods. While Charlie Bigham’s posh lasagnes have been the same price for years, Asda’s cheapest dry pasta has doubled in price since 2020, she said.
Woke up this morning to the radio talking about the cost of living rising a further 5%. It infuriates me the index that they use for this calculation, which grossly underestimates the real cost of inflation as it happens to people with the least. Allow me to briefly explain.
— Jack Monroe 🏳️⚧️🏳️🌈 (@BootstrapCook) January 19, 2022
What’s more, some cheap supermarket options have been discontinued, or aren’t available online or at smaller stores. This matters for two reasons. First, food is responsible for a bigger chunk of the poorest families’ monthly spend, so rises have a bigger impact. And second, they’ve nowhere else to go.
Which supermarket is cheapest every month?
Hitting the poorest hardest
When prices rise on TVs or cars, we can delay or decide against buying a new one.
But when you rely on the lowest-priced pasta you can’t just skip food for a week. That’s why Monroe’s new ‘Vimes Boots Index’ promises to be vital in seeing the effect of inflation on the poorest. Named after a character in a Terry Pratchett novel, who argues poverty causes greater expenses to the poor, the index will track the price of a basket of the most basic goods.
The government must act to ease the cost of living crisis, but supermarkets too have a responsibility to keep essential items affordable for the most vulnerable.
How are rising prices affecting you? What more do you think that needs to be done to ease the cost of living crisis amid rocketing inflation?
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