New plan aims to cap prices on supermarket essentials

Australians grappling with the ongoing cost of living crisis could potentially save money on 30 essential grocery items, thanks to a proposal introduced by the Queensland Greens that would place a cap on grocery prices.

Prices on basic essential items such as milk, bread, and eggs would be tied and linked to January 2024 wages so that wages match price growth.

Greens MP Amy MacMahon explained that similar measures are already in place overseas and there is no reason the same cannot be done in Queensland.

“The government can and should directly intervene by capping grocery prices to bring down the cost of Queenslanders’ groceries,” she said.

“A number of European governments are taking direct action to lower the cost of food, there’s no reason why we can’t do it here in Queensland.”

While the Greens work to put their price cap plan into place, in the meantime shoppers can make their weekly grocery shop more affordable following the release of consumer group CHOICE’s first quarterly, government-funded report on supermarket prices across Australia, which reveals the country’s cheapest supermarket.

As part of the research, CHOICE sent mystery shoppers to 81 regional and metropolitan supermarkets across the country, including Aldi, Woolworths, and Coles, to record prices for 14 common grocery items such as apples, carrots, bread, tea bags, beef mince, and butter among other essentials.

After comparing prices, CHOICE found that the cost of a full shopping basket at Aldi was 25 per cent cheaper than that of Coles and Woolworths.

CHOICE CEO, Ashley de Silva said “Aldi was the clear leader on value for money in our first supermarket basket survey for 2024, with our basket of 14 products costing just $51.51 – coming in at about 25% cheaper than Coles or Woolworths.”

“Grocery prices at Coles and Woolworths are very closely matched, with only 75 cents separating the prices of our basket of 14 items without specials. Coles was the most expensive at $69.33, while the basket at Woolworths came in at $68.58,” de Silva added.

Interestingly the research also discovered that where you live can also contribute to how much you could spend at the checkout.

“When we looked at the average cost of our supermarket baskets in each state we found that if you live in Tasmania or the Northern Territory, you’re paying significantly more each week for your groceries,” de Silva explained.

“However, this is mainly due to the fact that these areas have more limited options for shopping than the rest of the country, with no Aldi in Tassie or the NT.

“Outside of the Northern Territory and Tasmania, Western Australians are paying the most on average for their groceries – around a dollar more for this basket of items than people in other parts of the country pay.”

-with AAP.