Grocery price inflation hits highest level since December 2023

Inflation reached 6.5% in the 12 weeks to October 5, well ahead of the headline inflation rate of 2.7%

In October, take-home grocery sales rose by 6.1% with shoppers spending an additional €67.6m on groceries.

Irish grocery price inflation has reached its highest levels since December 2023, reaching 6.5% in the 12 weeks to October 5, as the busy periods of Halloween and Christmas approach, new data from Worldpanel by Numerator shows.

This is up from the 6.3% recorded in September and 3.4% recorded in January of this year. It is also well ahead of the headline inflation rate of 2.7%. 

In the four weeks to October 5, take-home grocery sales rose by 6.1%, with shoppers spending an additional €67.6m on groceries.

Business development director Emer Healy said following on from the budget earlier this month, and the uncertain economic backdrop, “there will be more pressure on shoppers and it may have an impact on their discretionary spending”.

“The end of one-off payments such as the energy credit and double child benefit, along with rising fuel and other household costs, will put extra pressure on many families, especially as tax bands remain unchanged and some credits are no longer available,” she said.

With prices still rising, cost is naturally a top priority and will continue to be as we step into 2026.

According to the data, spending on promotion jumped by 10.2% over the latest 12 weeks, outpacing the total market.

“Promotional activity typically intensifies in the lead-up to the festive season, so this trend is likely to persist into December,” the company said.

“Shoppers are increasingly relying on promotions to offset rising costs, resulting in an additional €71.5m spent compared to the same period last year. As budgets tighten, it will be interesting to see how this will affect shoppers’ spending habits and the contents of their shopping baskets,” Ms Healy said.

Own-label products saw growth during the 12 weeks to October 5 of 6.3%, with premium own-label products up 15.2%. Shoppers spent nearly €18.2m extra on these ranges.

Brand items grew at just 4.9% holding 47.6% share of the market, while own label products held 46.5% value share.

Dunnes Stores retained the highest share of consumer spend during this period at 24.4%, with sales growth of 6.2% year-on-year. Tesco held 23.7%, while SuperValu held 19.2%.

Lidl holds 14.1% of the market with growth of 9.2%, the fastest growth among all retailers. Aldi holds 11.4% market share.