Grocery inflation in the north’s supermarkets fell to the lowest rate in two years during September, new analysis from industry monitor Kantar suggests.
Last month’s rate of 4.98% marked the 13th consecutive month of declining inflation in the north, reaching levels last seen in August 2022.
Kantar’s analysis of consumer shopping activity in the 12 weeks to September 29 found evidence of households preparing for the new school year.
“Shoppers spent an additional £1 million on biscuits and as routines became busier, sales of frozen meal solutions grew by 3.7%,” said Eimear Faughnan from Kantar’s retail division.
“The Halloween aisles were hard to resist, and sales of confectionery jumped, with shoppers spending £2.3m more compared to last year.”
Kantar’s analysis suggest £4.34 billion passed through the north’s supermarket tills in the year to September 29 2024, up 4.6% (£190m) year-on-year.
The grocery monitor said branded products regained ground the in northern market, surpassing own-labels ranges and holding a 55.3% value market share.
Kantar said own-label products remain an important part of retailer offerings, growing slightly in value by 2.9% year-on-year.
Tesco maintained its position at the top of the table as the north’s largest grocer, with a 35.6% share of the market, up 6.1%.year-on-year.
The other main players, Sainsbury’s (16.6%), Asda (16.4%) and Lidl (9%), all increased their share of the grocery market over the year.
