Australians are skipping meals, and avoiding fruit and veg as supermarket prices soar

One in three Australians spend at least $100 more on their weekly grocery shop than they did two years ago. Soaring prices have forced many to make drastic cuts to family menus.

One in three Australians are spending at least $100 extra on their weekly grocery shop compared to two years ago, while more than half of households are buying less fruit and vegetables, and a third are cutting back on other essentials to pay for food.

As the cost of living crisis continues to put pressure on family budgets, more than 90 per cent of Australians have claimed they would shop somewhere other than Woolworths or Coles if there was an alternate option nearby, according to a survey of 4771 Australians conducted by the Greens.

About a third of people surveyed said they had skipped meals due to higher grocery prices, while 68 per cent have switched to cheaper products.

About 90 per cent of people said in their experience supermarket prices had “significantly increased” since 2022, with 37 per cent now spending more than $100 extra a week, and a further 42 per cent spending between $50 and $100 more.

Half of Australians said they had made “significant adjustments” to their household budgets due to higher food prices, with two thirds attempting to shop at stores other than Coles or Woolworths in search of cheaper options.

Senator Nick McKim says the supermarkets must be held accountable for any price gouging. Picture: Chris Kidd

Taking aim at the lack of competition and price gouging in the grocery sector, Greens economic justice spokesman Nick McKim said the survey results showed “corporate greed” was eroding the living standards of ordinary people.

“People are being forced to compromise on their health and wellbeing while supermarket corporations are raking in billions in profit,” he said.

“Behind these figures lie real human stories of distress and hardship.”

A new Senate committee is examining grocery pricing. Picture: Carla Gottgens/Bloomberg via Getty Images

Growing concerns about supermarket price gouging prompted the Greens to launch a Senate select committee on supermarket prices, which will finish taking submissions this week ahead of expected public hearings and a final report due in May.

Mr McKim said Australia needed to “smash” the supermarket duopoly and “get prices down”.

“It’s time for these supermarket giants to be held accountable, and that’s exactly what the Greens will do at the upcoming Senate inquiry.”

Coles posted a $1.1bn profit at its most recent full-year results, while Woolworths lifted its annual profit to $1.6bn.

More than 80 per cent of the people surveyed said the profits recorded by the major supermarkets were “completely unreasonable”.

In January, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission would conduct a 12-month supermarket price inquiry following concerns about gouging.

“For me, it’s this simple. When farmers are selling their product for less, supermarkets should charge Australians less,” he said.

Labor also committed $1.1m for consumer group Choice to help shoppers better understand if they are being ripped off by supermarkets.

Nationals leader David Littleproud has also been calling for greater scrutiny of prices, noting decreases at the farm gate were not always flowing through to the checkout.

“We could see this as far back as June when cattle and sheep prices dropped by about 60, 70 per cent but only an 8 per cent reduction of the checkout,” he said.

Originally published as Australians are skipping meals, and avoiding fruit and veg as supermarket prices soar