Irish grocery prices are climbing more slowly than at any point over the past two years, with a rate of inflation of 3.7 per cent recorded in the 12 weeks to the middle of last month, according to latest figures from retail analysts Kantar Worldpanel.
That compares with the 16 per cent inflation rate the organisation recorded in the same month last year, with the dramatically slower pace of increases suggesting the worst of the cost-of-living crisis might have passed.
Latest data from the Central Statistics Office (CSO) chimes with the narrative as the EU Harmonised Index of Consumer Prices published on Tuesday said the cost of food has actually fallen by 0.1 per cent in the last month and had risen by just 2.6 per cent over the past 12 months.
According to the Kantar data, Easter eggs were the big movers in March, with nearly half of all Irish households buying at least one chocolate egg, up 13.1 per cent when compared with last year. All told, shoppers spent €24.6 million on Easter eggs in the run-up to the bank holiday weekend, more than €9 million up on the same period last year.
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Shoppers were also seen to be splurging on other popular Easter treats, spending €1.1 million on hot cross buns, an increase of 28 per cent year-on-year.
Take-home grocery sales rose 4.5 per cent in the four weeks to March 17th with €1.1 billion passing through the tills as shoppers spent an additional €47.8 million on take-home grocery versus the same time last year.
“This is the 11th month in a row that there has been a drop in inflation, which will be very welcome news for consumers,” said Kantar’s business development director Emer Healy. “While it’s the lowest inflation level we have seen for two years, shoppers in Ireland are still on the hunt for value with over 25 per cent of value sales coming from promotions.”
Shoppers’ keen eye for deals was evident in the Easter egg sales, with over 51 per cent of value coming from sales of eggs sold on promotion.
Alongside promotions, retailers have also been placing an emphasis on own-label lines to get shoppers through the doors. Sales of own label performed strongly, growing ahead of the total market at 5.5 per cent year-on-year and holding a value share of 48 per cent with shoppers spending an additional €80.5 million on a year ago.
Premium own-label ranges continued to perform well with shoppers spending an additional €172 million on these lines, a 12.3 per cent increase compared with this time last year.
Online sales were up 16.7 per cent year-on-year with shoppers spending an additional €26.5 million via the web.
Dunnes holds a 24 per cent market share with growth of 7.7 per cent year-on-year. Tesco holds a 22.8 per cent share, up 7.5 per cent on a year ago. SuperValu has 20.4 per cent of the market while Lidl is on 13.5 per cent and Aldi holds an 11.5 per cent share.
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