New figures on shop prices confirm that food inflation in the UK is beginning to fall.
Food prices are still rising, but at a slower rate than in recent months, according to the latest report from the British Retail Consortium (BRC) and NielsenIQ.
The overall rate of inflation at UK retailers in the first week of May climbed to a new high of 9.0%, up slightly from 8.8% in April. Food inflation dropped to 15.4%, from 15.7% a month earlier.
A closer look at the figures for food inflation shows that prices for fresh food rose by 17.2%, down from 17.8% in April, while ambient food inflation accelerated to 13.1% in May, compared with 12.9% the previous month.
Inflation for non-food products accelerated to 5.8%, up from 5.5% in April.
Households will welcome the easing of food inflation, said BRC chief executive Helen Dickinson.
“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,” Dickinson explained.
“Conversely, the price of chocolate and coffee rose off the back of the ongoing high global costs for these commodities. While non-food inflation rose, consumers are benefitting from heavy discounts in footwear as well as books and home entertainment.”
“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,” added Mike Watkins, head of Retailer and Business Insight at NielsenIQ.
