UK supermarket price inflation hits record high, adding £788 to annual bills

Milk, eggs and dog food among grocery items whose prices rose fastest

Grocery price inflation has hit a fresh record high of 16.7%, adding nearly £800 to the typical annual shopping bill, with the price of milk, eggs and dog food rising fastest.

Inflation reached the new record in the four weeks to 22 January, according to retail analysts Kantar, the highest since it started tracking it in 2008. It was up sharply from December’s figure of 14.4%, which lifted Christmas spending to a record £12.8bn, and beat the previous record set in October. The latest increase will take the average annual food shopping bill to £5,504, up £788, Kantar said.