Latest news with #foodprices
The Independent
22 minutes ago
- Business
- The Independent
Famous Philly cheesesteak under threat as costs continue to spiral
The rising cost of beef is putting pressure on Philadelphia's iconic cheesesteak industry, with one prominent restaurateur expressing concern over the impact on his business and customers. Ken Silver, president of Jim's South St., notes that the price of beef from his supplier has climbed by approximately $1 per pound compared to a year ago. This recent hike follows a "crazy" roughly 50 per cent increase when his establishment reopened in 2024 after a fire. US beef prices have been steadily rising for the past two decades, a trend attributed to a tight supply of cattle coupled with sustained consumer popularity for the meat. 'Our strategy right now is just absorbing the price and hoping that we see a reduction after the summer months are over, the grilling season and all the rest,' Silver said Wednesday. He said a cheesesteak sandwich at Jim's South St. costs $13.49, up from $11.49 in 2022, when the popular eatery was forced to close for nearly two years because of a fire. Cheesesteaks typically are made with thinly sliced beef, cheese and onions, though other toppings are possible, too. For consumers, the average price of a pound of ground beef rose to $6.12 in June, up nearly 12% from a year ago, according to U.S. government data. The average price of all uncooked beef steaks rose 8% to $11.49 per pound. 'We've taken a hit, profitability-wise, just to maintain what our customers would expect to get when they come to us: a reasonably priced cheesesteak of the best quality they can find," Silver said. If supply costs don't ease, Silver said he might have to raise menu prices or declare a market price, which fluctuates and is commonly associated with seafood. 'I really hate to do that,' said Silver, whose father started the business in 1976. A customer, Bryan Williams, suggested a price hike wouldn't discourage him from placing an order. 'That's just how things are going lately,' he said. 'There's really nothing that they can do about it.'
News24
a day ago
- Business
- News24
June inflation heats up as power, food prices bite
Leon Sadiki/Bloomberg via Getty Images Consumer price index (CPI) inflation came in at 3% for June – from 2.8% in May. Inflation has been below 3% - the bottom level of the SA Reserve Bank's target band - from March to May. But in June, food prices continued to heat up. Food and non-alcoholic beverages were 5.1% more expensive than a year ago. Beef was a big contributor, as foot-and-mouth disease fuelled price hikes. Meat prices rose by 2.2% in the single month from May to June - and were almost 7% higher than a year before. But the biggest surge over the past year, of more than 13%, was in prices of fruit and vegetables. Hot beverages were also 10.1% more expensive than a year ago. Household electricity and gas prices were 11% higher than a year before, reflecting the latest Eskom price hikes. Housing and utilities saw a month-on-month increase of 0.5%, with rent increasing 1% month-on-month. June's inflation was still tempered by lower diesel and fuel prices - but this was reversed in July with large hikes after Israeli and US attacks on Iran triggered an oil price spike. While slightly higher than May, June's inflation number is in line with expectations and should bolster the case for the Reserve Bank's monetary policy committee to cut the repo rate by 25 basis points to 7% on Thursday next week. A cut is also supported by South African inflation expectations, which in the second quarter reached an almost four-year low. Unions, households and businesses are surveyed by the Bureau for Economic Research on their expectations for inflation over the next two years, which cooled to 4.5%. Expectations about where inflation is heading play a key role in driving prices higher. When workers expect inflation to remain high, they demand higher salary increases, which in turn drive prices higher as companies must recoup these higher costs. The SA Reserve Bank has been pushing hard to lower SA's inflation target to 3% (from a band of 3% to 6%).
BBC News
2 days ago
- Business
- BBC News
Food bills on course to rise by £275 as prices jump
The average household spend on food and drink is on course to rise by £275 this year as the price of groceries gathers pace. Over the past month, food prices have risen by 5.4% at the same time as consumers' concerns about the cost of shopping has accelerated, according to market research firm said people are changing their shopping habits to buying supermarkets' own-brand products, which are sometimes cheaper, as well as preparing simpler and lower cost meals at home. The increase in prices over the last four weeks is the highest since the beginning of 2024. On average, UK households spend around £5,283 for a year on groceries but this could increase by £275 unless people change what they McKevitt, head of retail and consumer insight at Worldpanel, formerly known as Kantar, said current food inflation brought to mind the sort of prices people were paying in supermarkets after Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in early cost of energy and commodities soared before easing in 2023. But Mr McKevitt said: "We're back up on that rollercoaster."Chocolate, butter and spreads as well as fresh meat recorded the sharpest rises in the four weeks to 17 July, according to the company, which monitors prices on 75,000 identical the same time, the cost of dog food, sugar confectionery and laundry dropped. Mr McKevitt said most people have options when it comes to managing food costs such as buying more own-brands goods from supermarkets, looking for promotions or going to cheaper shops. But Worldpanel said that around a fifth of households in the UK are "struggling" with grocery bills, with some of those in a situation where they can not cut food costs any research firm, which follows the shopping habits of 30,000 households across the UK, said people are making simpler evening meals when trying to save money."Almost seven in 10 dinner plates include fewer than six components," said Worldpanel.
The Guardian
2 days ago
- Business
- The Guardian
Britons ‘turning to simpler meals' as grocery bills head for £275 annual rise
Consumers are expected to switch to cooking simpler meals at home to save money, as rising food prices threaten to add nearly £300 a year to household grocery bills, according to research. Shoppers are increasingly picking up supermarket own-label products to help manage their budgets, according to the research company Worldpanel, as grocery inflation stepped up from the 4.7% reported in June to 5.2% in July, the highest level since January 2024. If food prices remain elevated, it could add £275 to the average household grocery bill – now £5,283 a year – analysts at Worldpanel estimated. Fraser McKevitt, the head of retail and consumer insight at Worldpanel, said just under two-thirds of households were 'very concerned' about the cost of their grocery shopping. 'Own-label products, which are often cheaper, continue to be some of the big winners and, in fact, sales of these ranges are again outpacing brands, growing by 5.6% versus 4.9%,' he said. 'These inflationary worries aren't just changing what we buy, but how we prepare it, too. We often see people choosing to make simpler meals when they are trying to save money, and today, almost seven in 10 dinner plates include fewer than six components.' The news comes as separate official figures released last week that inflation in the UK unexpectedly rose in June, driven by fuel and food prices. The Office for National Statistics said the consumer prices index rose by 3.6%, and food price inflation was up for a third consecutive month, to 4.5%. That was driven by the rising price of cakes, meat, milk, eggs and cheddar cheese, the ONS found. Rising prices come as supermarkets warn they are coming under pressure from higher wage costs as well as a possible shake-up of business rates. Simon Roberts, the boss of Sainsbury's, told the Telegraph that big retailers would 'pull away from our high streets' as they adjusted to a big rise in national insurance contributions and a minimum wage increase. He told the paper: 'The changes being proposed will further increase the negative impact of business rates and won't stimulate the growth or investment into our high streets and jobs that we all want to see.' Helen Dickinson, the chief executive of the industry body the British Retail Consortium, has said higher wage costs, as well as external pressures such as poor harvests, could drive up food prices. Sign up to Business Today Get set for the working day – we'll point you to all the business news and analysis you need every morning after newsletter promotion Dickinson told the Sunday Times: 'Retailers are doing everything they can to shield customers from these mounting pressures, but there is only so much they can absorb before costs start feeding through to prices.' More shoppers looking for supermarket deals helped the German discounter Lidl reach a record high market share at 8.3% in July. It attracted more than 500,000 new customers to its stores, Worldpanel found. Ocado was again the fastest-growing grocer in the sector, as its sales were up by 11.7% in the 12 weeks to 14 July, although its market share remained at 2%. Tesco had the biggest share of the market, at 28.3%. At Marks & Spencer, spending on groceries was up by 6.5%, compared with a rate of 14.4% before it suffered a cyber-attack in April. In June, spending on groceries at the retailer rose by 12.3%. Sales at Asda, which is attempting a turnaround fell 3%, while the Co-op, also hit by a cyber-attack, recorded a drop of 3.7%.
Daily Mail
2 days ago
- Business
- Daily Mail
Shoppers pay £275 more at the tills as food prices continue to climb
Shoppers could spend an extra £275 on groceries this year as food prices continue to rise, bringing their total bill to over £5,500, new figures suggest. Closely-watched data released by market research firm Numerator, formerly Kantar, show grocery inflation reached 5.2 per cent in the four weeks to 13 July, marking their highest level in 18 months. It chimes with the latest CPI reading showed an uptick in inflation from 3.4 to 3.6 per cent between May and June, driven primarily by rising fuel and food prices, according to the Office for National Statistics. With the average household spending £5,283 on food every year, the latest rise could add £275 to bills if their habits stay the same, Numerator said. The figures suggest shoppers are trying to shield themselves from the worst of the price hikes by opting for own-label products, which now outpace brands, growing by 5.6 per cent versus 4.9 per cent. 'These inflationary worries aren't just changing what we buy, but how we prepare it too,' says Fraser McKevitt, head of retail and consumer insight at Worldpanel. 'We often see people choosing to make simpler meals when they are trying to save money, and today, almost seven in ten dinner plates include fewer than six components.' The figures come just a week after figures from the British Retail Consortium (BRC) showed a rebound in retail sales, up 3.1 per cent year-on-year in June. While food sales increased 4.1 per cent, it said it had been driven mainly by food inflation, with non-food sales rising just 2.2 per cent. Cost-conscious consumers are driving sales at discount retailers like Aldi, where sales increased by 6.3 per cent bringing its market share to 10.9 per cent, just behind Tesco, Sainsbury's and Asda. Lidl reached a record high market share at 8.5 per cent having attracted half a million new customers to its stores. Tesco retains the top spot with a market share of 28.3 per cent as sales grew by 7.1 per cent, while Asda continued to lose ground with a market share of 11.8 per cent. Cost-cutting might be high on the agenda for some consumers, but the hot weather means some categories are seeing an uptick in sales. Iced coffee sales were up by 81 per cent, while kombucha drinks doubled their sales over the last four weeks compared to 2024. Sales of ice cream and sorbet soared by 33 per cent. 'Innovation is absolutely vital to help grocers keep up with new trends and make sure they're meeting shoppers' needs as behaviours and priorities shift,' says McKevitt. 'The drinks aisle in particular seems to be offering up plenty of inspiration.'
