Grocery price inflation surged to 4.1% in May, with chocolate and suncare products leading the charge during the hottest start to the month on record.
The increase follows a 3.8% rise in April and a 1.8% uptick in March, as reported by Kantar, as reported by .
"This latest jump in grocery price inflation takes us into new territory for 2025," commented Fraser McKevitt, head of retail and consumer insight at Kantar.
"Households have been adapting their buying habits to manage budgets for some time, but we typically see changes in behaviour once inflation tips beyond the three to four per cent point as people notice the impact on their wallets more," he further explained.
Fresh data from the British Retail Consortium (BRC) earlier this week similarly found that food prices were on the rise.
The increase was particularly stark for fresh foods like steak, which have been affected by a rise in wholesale prices.
The BRC also warned that a higher cost burden for retailers in the form of a new packaging tax and higher employers' national insurance contributions (NICs) would contribute to higher prices in the future.
Ocado marks a year as Britain's fastest growing grocer
Kantar also released data on º£½ÇÊÓƵ grocers' market share in the 12 weeks to 19 May.
Sales at Ocado increased 14.9 per cent over the three months, meaning the online retailer has spent a full year as Britain's fastest-growing grocer.
Discounters had an impressive beginning to the year, experiencing their strongest combined growth since January 2024, at 8.4%.
Lidl attracted 419,000 additional customers compared with the same period last year, the highest increase of any retailer, as reported by Kantar.
Tesco, the º£½ÇÊÓƵ's largest supermarket chain, saw its sales climb 5.9% to £9.38bn. Its market share now stands at 28%.
Asda delivered its best performance in a three-month span since May of last year, securing a market share of 12.1%.
Allan Leighton, making his comeback as chair, has orchestrated a notable recovery at the TDR Capital-owned grocer, mentioning a "war chest" aimed at reducing prices to compete with mainstays such as Tesco, Sainsbury's, Morrisons, and the discounters.
