A shopper who compared the prices of identical basic items in supermarkets week after week says Morrison’s won an unfortunate crown in the latest bill battle – more expensive than Sainsbury’s. Emma Gill from the MEN bought the same items from different stores to give a weekly analysis of price trends.
She bought the same eight items from Tesco, Asda, Aldi, Lidl, Sainsbury’s and Morrisons – a two-quart bottle of milk, a loaf of bread, coffee, tea bags, butter, beans, breasts of chicken and minced meat. Last week, MEN found Lidl to be the cheapest of all eight products, at £9.82.
Emma said: “Despite the increase in the price of milk and butter this week, it has still kept its bill lower than any other store, at £9.91. The biggest shock though is Morrisons, who it just three weeks ago wore the cheapest crown herself, with a £9.78 bill for the basket.
“Now it comes in at £10.91 and turns out to be the most expensive of them all – taking the unfortunate place of Sainsbury’s for the first time. Three separate increases have put it there this week – its cheapest loaf of bread dropping from 39p to 54p, chicken up to £2.49 for a 300g pack of two breasts and mince dropping from £1.89 to £2.19.
“These meat prices are higher than any other supermarket and the mince is 50p more expensive than the cheapest, which is Asda’s new Just Essentials pack for £1.69. It’s not just Morrisons which drives up prices.
“Lidl, Tesco and Sainsbury’s have joined the others in raising the cost of 2 pints of milk to £1.05 from 99p, with the latter two also increasing the cost of their chicken. And Lidl has increased the cost of its butter from £1.69 to £1.72, although he still sells it cheaper than elsewhere.”
A number of organizations perform price comparisons week after week. The Grocer, for example, has been comparing prices in supermarkets for 20 years. In his latest chart, a basket of food at Morrisons was £51.74 while the same basket at Sainsbury’s was £52.82.
Grocer figures saw Tesco billed at £52.21, Asda at £51.69, Waitrose at £66.05, Aldi at £45.88 and Lidl the cheapest at £45.64.
Who? uses a basket of 18 items to compare – and puts Sainsbury’s at £27.32 while Morrisons came in at £27.06. Lidl was the cheapest at £23.55.
Here is the shopping list and total for each supermarket in the MEN test (as of Friday, June 17)
lidl
Loaf of white bread 800g – 36p
Milk 2 pints – £1.05 (from 99p)
Coffee 200g – 1,69€
160 tea bags – £99
Salted butter 250g – 1,72€ (from £1.69)
Beans Box 420g – 22p
Chicken 300g – £1.99
Chopped 500g 20% MG – €1.89
Total £9.91 (was £9.82)
Asda
Loaf of white bread 800g (Malin Price) – 39p
Milk 2 pints – £1.05
Coffee 200g (2 x 100g Just Essentials) – £1.50
160 tea bags (4 x smart price 40 pack) – £1.12
Salted butter 250g – €1.75
Beans 410g tin (Smart Price) – 25p
Chicken (largest 350g pack for £2.65) – equals £2.27
Chopped 500g 20% MG – €1.69
Total£10.02
Aldi
Loaf of white bread 800g – 36p
Milk 2 pints – £1.05
Coffee 200g – 1,69€
Bags 160 – €1.09
Salted butter 250g – €1.75
Beans Box 420g – 22p
Chicken 300g – £1.99
Chopped 500g 20% MG – €1.89
Total £10.04
Tesco
Loaf of white bread 800g – 36p
Milk 2 pints – £1.05 (from 99p)
Coffee 200g (2 x 100g) – £1.70
160 tea bags (2 x 80 pack) – €1.10
Salted butter 250g – €1.75
Beans Box 420g – 22p
Chicken 300g – £2.25 (from £2.20)
Chopped 500g 20% MG – €1.89
Total £10.32 (was £10.21)
Sainsbury’s
Loaf of white bread 800g – 36p
Milk 2 pints – £1.05 (from 99p)
Coffee 200g 2€ (from £1.69)
Bags 160 – €1.09
Salted butter 250g – €1.75 (was £1.90)
Beans Box 400g – 21p
Chicken 300g – £2.40 (from £2.30)
Chopped 500g 20% MG – €1.89 (was £2.10)
Total £10.75 (was £10.64)
Morrison
Loaf of white bread 800g – 54p (from 39p)
Milk 2 pints – £1.05
Coffee (2 x 100g) – £1.50
160 Tea Bags (2 x 80-pack Savers) – £1.18
Salted butter 250g – €1.75
Beans Box 410g – 21p
Chicken 300g – 2,49€ (was £2.05)
Chopped 500g 20% MG – €2.19 (was £1.89)
Total £10.91 (was £10.02)
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