Festive favourite vegetable lines have seen significant price increases compared to last Christmas.
Sprouts, carrots, potatoes and cabbage prices all rose, according to The Grocer’s analysis of Assosia data [Assosia 52 w/e 17 November].
The biggest price increase was at Morrisons where its White Potatoes (2.5kg) have gone up by 50.4% compared to last year, now costing £1.94 instead of £1.29. The price has now come down since the data was first run to £1.65, representing an annual increase of 27.9%.
The next highest increase was Sainsbury’s Sweetheart Cabbage which was up from 69p last year to 85p this year, representing a hike of 23.2%.
Carrots also saw high increases with Asda Grower’s Selection Carrots 500g and Sainsbury’s Carrots So Organic 700g up 15% and 13% respectively.
Meanwhile, the controversial Christmas choice, brussels sprouts, saw almost universal price increases with core lines at Morrisons, Aldi, Lidl and Sainsbury’s all increasing by over 10%.
Morrisons and Sainsbury’s are now £1 per pack up from 89p and 90p respectively. Meanwhile, Aldi and Lidl’s, both up 11.1%, now cost 95p per pack, although Aldi has confirmed it will lower its price to 89p this week.
Across the board, sprout prices are outpacing general food inflation and increasing by 5.6% this year.
Poor weather impacting yields
The price increases have been attributed to poor weather across Europe which has had an impact on yields.
These shortages have then been exacerbated by increased input costs, including raw materials and labour, which have been pushing up the cost of growing and packaging vegetables.
Carrot growers had warned as early as August that yields were likely to be impacted in the harvest in the run up to Christmas due to the lack of rain and hot summer, with one telling The Grocer that “yields will be hit, and our costs have gone up dramatically”.
It comes as the cost of Christmas dinners are expected to rise this year, with turkeys up to 30% more expensive compared to 2024. According to analysis by The Grocer using Assosia data, more than half of all frozen turkey lines in supermarkets are outpacing general inflation, while preorders of fresh turkeys are seeing double-digit price hikes.
Despite this, it is anticipated the retailers will begin cutting prices in the run up to Christmas to ensure footfall. The so-called “Festive Five” offer initiated by Tesco over a decade ago is now copied by the majority of the mults.
“Retailers are going above and beyond to deliver value for customers and minimise the impact of rising costs while ensuring suppliers are paid fairly,” said a BRC spokesperson.
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