UK finance minister to meet food producers to discuss high prices

UK Treasury Secretary Jeremy Hunt plans to raise concerns about rising food prices and discuss ways to ease the burden on families during a meeting with food producers.

“The rise in food prices has been very resilient, so we need to understand what is causing it,” Hunt said in a statement released by the Treasury Department on Monday.

His meeting comes just weeks after Prime Minister Rishi Sunak hosted a food summit that brought together farmers, suppliers, retailers and industry organizations to drive growth, innovation and sustainability in the sector.

The Treasury Department said Hunt also plans to meet with the country's watchdog, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), which pledged last week to step up its work on food price scrutiny after food prices rose to 46-year-olds in March . maximum.

Official data showed UK food prices were 19.1% higher in March than a year earlier, the biggest such rise since August 1977, while food inflation was 17.3% in April , according to industry data.

“Food inflation disproportionately affects low-income households, who spend the majority of their income on food and are less able to replace what they normally buy with cheaper alternatives,” the statement said.

The Treasury Department added that the government will consider updating the pricing rules once the CMA review is completed.

Separately, a committee of British lawmakers is investigating the fairness of the country's food supply chain in an attempt to understand why households face such prices.

“We believe food and drink price inflation is close to its peak and food and drink manufacturers will continue to work hard to keep prices as low as possible,” said Karen, CEO of the British Food and Drink Federation . Betts in a Treasury Department statement.