Major supermarkets are failing to make their budget-range groceries available to people who have to shop in their small stores, new Which? research reveals today.
We sent a team of mystery shoppers into 123 different-sized branches of Asda, Morrisons, Sainsbury's and Tesco across the UK to assess the availability of a range of essential budget groceries.
Each shopper was armed with a list of around 29 different basic budget groceries to find in each store.
The results revealed shoppers who rely on Morrisons Daily, Sainsbury's Local and Tesco Express stores cannot access a decent range of cheap, healthy food.
Get a firmer grip on your finances with the expert tips in our Money newsletter – it's free weekly.
This newsletter delivers free money-related content, along with other information about Which? Group products and services. Unsubscribe whenever you want. Your data will be processed in accordance with our Privacy policy
Stark contrast between large and small stores
Whether or not you will be able to buy a decent range of budget groceries depends on which type of supermarket store you use.
Our research found the availability of budget groceries was generally good in large stores, where our mystery shoppers were on average able to find nine in ten items on our shopping list either in stock, or at least with dedicated space on the shelves if they had sold out.
However, shoppers using supermarket-branded convenience stores would almost never be able to buy the budget-line items on our list. Of the 35 Morrisons Daily, Sainsbury's Local and Tesco Express stores we visited, 30 did not have any of the listed budget items at all. In the other five small stores, our mystery shoppers were only able to find one item from our list.
The lack of budget lines in small stores means shoppers either have to pay more for branded or non-budget groceries or go without. And to make matters worse, Which? research has found that it’s often the poorest people who rely on convenience stores the most: in a March 2023 survey, we found that 66% of those on less than £21,000 per year shop in a convenience store at least once a week.
People with personal mobility issues, without access to a car or with poor access to public transport are also more likely to rely on convenience stores.
Even full-sized supermarkets were sometimes missing budget items. These most commonly included staples like minced meat and tinned tuna. The non-budget alternatives to these items are usually significantly more expensive, meaning some families could end up going without.
Budget grocery availability more important than ever
Food inflation is at its highest rate in over 45 years, with the Which? tracker showing prices rising by 17.2% in the year to March 2023.
We know the availability of budget ranges is important to people in the current cost of living crisis. Providing more budget ranges is the top action people want from supermarkets to help them save money on food, according to a survey of 2,791 UK adults in August 2022 – and more than half (56%) of those finding their finances very difficult said that they would benefit from more budget ranges being available.
Consumers are trying to save money by switching supermarkets, buying cheaper items and looking for special offers. But for those already struggling to make ends meet, there has been little respite from rising prices. In February 2023, one in six (15%) people reported skipping meals.
Our Priority Places for Food Index reveals where across the UK people are most at risk of food insecurity. It was developed in partnership with the University of Leeds, using numerous data sources to look at both the extent to which people in a local area are likely to need affordable food and their access to it.
In high priority places, people are more likely to be living on lower incomes – and while some consumers have adapted to the crisis by shopping around, people in high priority places are less likely to have this option due to fewer supermarkets nearby and poorer access to transport.
In our survey, 36% of shoppers said having more budget-range foods available would help them to save the most money on food in supermarkets.
Grace (not her real name), aged 77, who lives in Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire, told Which?: 'I live in a rural location and no longer drive any distance. I have an order delivered by a leading supermarket about once a month, choosing their cheapest delivery charge, and top up at my local small store.
'It's the topping up that can be more expensive. I worry about being able to keep to my budget.'
Which? calls for action: supermarkets must step up
Supermarkets have a crucial role in supporting people during the current cost of living crisis – particularly in the places around the country where they are most likely to be struggling.
Supermarkets are providing a wide range of budget lines that will support a healthy diet in their larger stores, but they need to put a much greater focus on availability in their convenience stores. Small stores need to offer a basic and healthy range of budget lines so that cheaper food is available to the growing number of people who are having to trade down and are unable to go to larger stores.
We found this to be an issue with Morrisons, Sainsbury's and Tesco, all of which have established convenience store brands – and as Asda rolls out its own new convenience stores, it also needs to ensure that this is addressed. This is particularly important in the areas where people are struggling the most.
More generally, supermarkets need to ensure that their pricing is clear and transparent, including for promotions and loyalty card offers, so that people are able to easily compare products and decide which is the best value for their needs.
Sue Davies, Which? Head of Food Policy, said: 'At a time when millions of people are struggling to put food on the table, it’s shocking that budget-range foods are not available to people who can’t get to a large supermarket. Everyone should have access to affordable nutritious food, no matter where they live.
'Which? is now calling on supermarket bosses to offer a choice of budget ranges that support a healthy diet to convenience stores, especially in areas where people are struggling the most. They must also make it easier for all customers to work out which items offer the best value for money by making sure their pricing is clear and easily comparable.'
An Asda spokesperson said: 'More than 10 million customers are regularly buying products from the Just Essentials range, which is available in stores and online. We are pleased that Which? were able to find the vast majority of products when they visited our stores.'
A Morrisons spokesperson said: 'Our Savers range has never been more important to our customers. In the last few months, we have cut the prices of over 50% of the products, broadened the range by more than 10%, and we are currently updating and improving the packaging. We believe that our customers appreciate the value, breadth, quality and availability of the range more than ever.'
Sainsbury's and Tesco were approached for a comment on our findings but did not provide one.
