Cost of living crisis: Average annual groceries bill set to jump by £643 per household as inflation nears 14%

Households in the UK could soon find themselves spending an extra £643 per year on groceries as inflation nears 14%, according to new data.

The figures, released in a report on changing shopping habits by the Kantar Worldpanel, show that grocery inflation ran at 13.9% in the 12 weeks to October 2.

That’s the equivalent to an extra £643 on top of an average annual grocery bill - a sharp rise from last month when the rate was reported at 12.4%, adding an extra £571.

It comes at a time when soaring energy bills, fuelled by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February, are already threatening to propel people into poverty.

But government aid for households and businesses, including caps on wholesale gas and electricity, should help limit spikes in inflation this winter.

Kantar’s report also shed light on changing shopping habits across the UK, throwing up some interesting results.

Dog food, milk and margarine remained among items that saw the highest price increases, meanwhile supermarket chains saw stronger demand for their cheapet, own-brand items.

Sales of ‘wonky’ or ‘imperfect’ vegetables, which tend to be cheaper than their ‘normally-shaped’ counterparts also increased by 38% on the previous month.