Grocery price inflation rises to 4.3% in blow to households

Grocery price inflation rose to 4.3% in February after four consecutive months of falls in a blow for households, figures show.

The increase from January’s 4% came as shoppers held off on Valentine’s Day spending until the last minute, with almost 12% of households picking up a premium meal deal on Friday night alone, according to market research firm Worldpanel by Numerator.

However, they did eventually spend a collective £39 million on high-end meal deals priced at £10 or more – seven times higher than the previous week.

Sales of pre-made pancake mixes were up 114% week on week leading up to Shrove Tuesday, but those making their own batter paid 42p or almost 6% more than last year as the cost of key ingredients reached £7.77.

Fraser McKevitt, head of retail and consumer insight at Worldpanel, said: “Looking ahead to Easter, shoppers will notice that chocolate prices remain high, up 9.3% year on year.

“While this is still a significant rise, the pace of inflation in the category is beginning to ease and is now at its lowest level since September 2025.”

Shoppers increasingly chose to do their grocery shopping online, with sales made through the internet up 9.7% year on year.

More than 18 million orders were placed over the four weeks, taking the channel’s share to 13%, the highest level since July 2021.

Mr McKevitt added: “More affluent families in London and the south east of England are still the most likely to shop for groceries online.

“However, the channel’s appeal is broadening, with shoppers from a wider range of economic backgrounds increasingly drawn to its convenience.”

Ocado was once again the fastest growing grocer over the 12 weeks to February 22, a position it has maintained since September 2025.

Lidl recorded double-digit sales growth for the 12th consecutive period, up this time by 10%.

Tesco saw sales grow by 4.5% to reach market share of 28.5%, while Sainsbury’s increased its market share to 16.1% as sales rose by 5.2% over the 12 weeks.

Sales at Waitrose achieved its highest rate of growth at 5.6% since March 2021 to reach market share of 4.8%.

Asda once again saw its sales dip year-on-year, this time by 2.6%, while Co-op’s sales were down 1.6% on last February.

Published: 03/03/2026 by Radio NewsHub