Old receipt reveals grim grocery reality Aussies are facing

A docket dug up from 2021 has laid bare how much more Aussies are paying for everyday items at our major supermarkets.

An unearthed receipt has laid bare how much the price of groceries has grown, with some items doubling in price over the past few years.

An X user shared what she claims is a 2021 docket from a Melbourne Woolworths as she called out just how much some common items set back customers compared to three years ago.

She said it showed Aussies were shelling out for costs that appear to have moved well past official inflation levels, which rose to 3.8 per cent by the end of June.

“We all knew we’re being ripped off! Australians are now paying up to 200% more for basic grocery items than they were a few years ago!” she wrote.

“Oh but inflations (sic) currently back at around 3.8% … yeh (sic) my ass it is!!”

An old Wollies docket has shown how much prices have changed. Picture: MadsMelbourne/X

Aussies have been dealing with increased grocery prices. Picture: NewsWire / Glenn Campbell

Her docket shows how everyday items like coffee grounds, potato chips and stain removers have skyrocketed in price.

In the receipt items such as a 250g packet of Bega cheese is priced at $4.50 – it’s now $6 for the same item, discounted from $7.50 according to online pricing.

A current Woolworths catalogue shows a 1.25l bottle of Coca-Cola is on special at $1.92, which is advertised as being half price.

That was $1.80 three years ago.

The current catalogue also advertises Thins original chips as being 40 per cent off at $3, saying customers were saving $2.

The X user got that item for $2.50 in 2021.

A humble packet of chips is now $5 when not on sale. Picture: Supplied

Deli fresh Champagne leg ham sold for $2.50 for 100g in the receipt, while current prices put that at $4.20.

Ozkleen prewash power stain remover is now currently listed as $7 for a 500ml bottle, more than 200 per cent higher than the $2.75 it sold for three years ago.

And a 200g bag of Delta ground coffee was $2.50 – it’s now selling for $4.

This item was $4.50 in 2021. Picture: Supplied

It is unclear if any of the items listed on the receipt were on sale at the time.

A Woolworth’s spokesperson chalked up the difference to “Ongoing economy-wide inflation”, adding, “it costs more for many supermarket suppliers to manufacture their products than it did a few years ago.”

The supermarket giant added: “We remain focussed on delivering lower prices where we can, with our average prices coming down in the last six months and thousands of specials every week.”

“The price of fruit and vegetables can vary throughout the year due to weather, seasonality, supply and demand. For example, Haas avocados are currently not in season.”

Australian Bureau of Statistics data revealed the price of food has risen 17 per cent for working households since March 2020, before the Covid-19 pandemic.

Food and non-alcoholic beverages rose 3.3 per cent in price in the 12 months to June, the ABS has reported.

Grocery prices have come under the spotlight amid the cost-of-living crisis, with the Australian Consumer and Competition Commission tasked with probing the sector.

“We know grocery prices have become a major concern for the millions of Australians experiencing cost of living pressures,” its chair Gina Cass-Gottlieb said in January.

“When it comes to fresh produce, we understand that many farmers are concerned about weak correlation between the price they receive for their produce and the price consumers pay at the checkout.”

Woolworths boss Brad Banducci appeared at a Senate inquiry into supermarket prices.

The major supermarkets, Coles and Woolworths, have defended the price rises as being pushed by supply chain struggles.

Both companies posted profits of more than $1 billion in the last financial year.

Outgoing Woolies boss Brad Banducci told a South Australian Senate inquiry in May the company was prepared to forego profits to “do the right thing” by customers.

Mr Banducci referenced a decision to lower meat prices in the run up to Christmas last year.

“We will of course make those decisions,” he said.

“We are very sensitive on things like the price of milk, what we would call lunch box items.”

A Roy Morgan poll in May found Coles and Woolworths had plummeted down the list of Australia’s most trusted brands.

Coles went from the fifth most trusted brand to the ninth most distrusted brand, while Woolies dropped 32 places from the second to the 34th most trusted brand.

Roy Morgan chief Michele Levine said it was expected the retailers’ reputations would continue to decline in coming years.

“We have been tracking trust and distrust of brands in Australia for more than seven years, but we have never seen a reputational crash as dramatic as Coles and Woolworths – not even Qantas.

“This is in direct contrast to the soaring reputational trust that they gained during the pandemic.”

Research by consumer group Choice this year revealed a basket of groceries from Aldi was about 25 per cent cheaper than baskets bought at Coles or Woolworths, saving the consumer around $17.