With the prices of everyday items continuing to soar, and food being a necessity, our weekly grocery shop can quickly add up to being one of the biggest expenses each month. In fact, the average cost of a weekly food shop has risen by 37% in just two years.
And those with food intolerances may feel the financial strain even more – as catering to their dietary needs and requirements often means only having one or two options to choose from, as opposed to an array of food products for those that aren’t affected.
Around 2 million Britons are thought to have a diagnosed food allergy and around one in five adults report having a food intolerance. The most common allergens are dairy, eggs, and nuts, while many more suffer from gluten intolerance or celiac disease.
The ‘free-from’ industry has boomed over the years and is now worth 3.4 billion, but this diet is medically needed for many. Otherwise, eating standard forms of pasta, bread and sauces could prove detrimental to their health and cause painful symptoms such as abdominal pain and nausea. But has the cost of living crisis made it even more difficult for those with intolerances to buy their weekly food shop?
And of different intolerances and allergies, how does the cost of living affect different dietary requirements?
UK Debt Expert analysed 25 common weekly food shop products across Tesco, Asda, Morrisons and Sainsbury’s to create a price comparison between gluten-free, nut-free and dairy-free products vs regular items. To ensure fair price comparison, we looked at the price per 200ml per item, which revealed that the average person in need of gluten, dairy or nut-free alternatives is spending 45% extra per week (up to £13.55 more) – which works out to £54 more per month – just to consume foods that won’t cause digestion or other health related issues.
Gluten-free diets are more expensive than others
| Standard total weekly shop per 200ml/200g | Gluten-free total weekly shop per 200ml/200g | Price difference | |
| Asda | £29.71 | £37.15 | £7.44 |
| Tesco | £32.62 | £46.16 | £13.54 |
| Sainsbury’s | £29.15 | £48.31 | £19.16 |
| Morrisons | £28.46 | £42.53 | £14.07 |
| Average | 29.99 | 43.54 | £13.55 |
Brits with gluten intolerance spend 7% more than those with nut or dairy allergies. This ‘gluten-free tax’ leads to an average weekly cost of nearly £44 a week, or £176 a month, compared to £119 for a standard food shop – a 38% increase.
Take our Financial Wellness Check and get a clearer understanding of your financial health.
“Our weekly food shop went from £60 to £100”
This is the case for Stuart Tongue, 29, from Nottingham, who was diagnosed with coeliac disease over six months ago but has long suffered from symptoms of gluten intolerance.
He said: “Gluten-free food is so much more expensive in general. There are some cheaper options such as pasta which often comes under £1, but everything else comes in so pricey. Your daily essentials like bread are extremely expensive – especially if you want decent quality. A standard pack of digestives is around £1.50, and our weekly shop (just for two) went from an average of £60-£70 to almost £100 now.”
This is an ongoing issue as Coeliac UK’s report urged the government to make gluten-free food more affordable, particularly amidst the cost of living crisis.
Stuart realised that planning meals around payday is more affordable in the long run as “wraps are £4 for 4” and “if we want meals like this we tend to have these at the start of the month because it’s just been payday and the quantity is tiny.”
“Breakfast is also difficult because almost every brand of cereal has barley in it and snacks are also almost exclusively £2 and up for a very small chocolate bar. All things we buy, like cereal, porridge oats are usually twice the price as the regular versions (except pasta) and often half the size.”
People allergic to nuts are spending 34% more
| Standard free-from total weekly shop per 200ml/200g | Nut-free total weekly shop per 200ml/200g | Price difference | |
| Asda | £29.71 | £36.28 | £6.57 |
| Tesco | £32.62 | £46.06 | £13.44 |
| Sainsbury’s | £29.15 | £46.10 | £16.95 |
| Morrisons | £28.46 | £41.91 | £13.45 |
| 29.99 | 42.59 | £12.60 |
1 in 50 children and 1 in 200 adults in the UK have been diagnosed with a nut allergy, and yet buying alternatives without nuts is still expensive.
Common shopping basket items such as chocolate biscuits or certain cereals can’t be bought in their standard form as they may contain traces of nuts. Some products work out cheaper; for those who can’t have pesto sauce, a substitute like garlic and herb works out more affordable by £1.
Similar to the gluten-free basket, Asda was the cheapest with Morrisons coming in second. On average, those who need to buy nut-free alternatives will spend £12 more than a standard weekly shop.
Dairy allergy shoppers are spending £13 more on a weekly shop
| Standard free-from total weekly shop per 200ml/200g | Dairy-free total weekly shop per 200ml/200g | Price difference | |
| Asda | 30.77 | £39.07 | £8.30 |
| Tesco | 32.62 | 45.76 | 13.14 |
| Sainsbury’s | 29.15 | 48.15 | 19 |
| Morrisons | 28.46 | £41.59 | £13.13 |
| 30.25 | 43.64 | 13.39 |
Dairy-free yoghurts, milk and cheeses were also found to be far less affordable than the standard alternatives. For example, a 200g block of vegan cheese is £2.50, whereas a standard 400g block of cheese comes in at £3.
Oat, almond and soy milk are becoming more popular across the UK due to health, environmental and sustainability issues, however, the maximum weight for a bottle of oat milk is a litre – at £2.50. Whereas dairy drinkers have far more affordable options for milk, as they’re not only able to choose from sizes that vary from half a pint to 4 pints, but the average price is cheaper, too.
A supermarket analysis
Sainsbury’s customers were revealed to be those likely spending the most, with a weekly shop costing £61, a whopping 39% (£20 more) more than a regular food shop.
For an essential such as a loaf of bread, 200g of tiger gluten-free tiger bread costs £3.70, while the regular load is priced at £1.65. Similarly, a 280-gram block of plant-based cheese costs around £3.60, while regular cheese costs £3.00 for nearly double the quantity at 400 grams.
EXAMPLE COST OF A WEEKLY FOOD SHOP
|
Brand |
Product | Non Free From quantity | Free From quantity | Regular price | Alternative price |
| Sainsbury’s | Milk | 2272 | 1000ml | £1.45 | £2.00 |
| Sainsbury’s | Cheese | 400 | 280g | £3.00 | £3.60 |
| Sainsbury’s | Cereal | 500 | 300g | £0.75 | £1.75 |
| Sainsbury’s | Cooking Sauce | 500 | 350g | £0.99 | £2.85 |
| Sainsbury’s | Chicken Steaks | 180 | 180g | £2.50 | £2.75 |
| Sainsbury’s | Pasta | 500 | 500g | £0.75 | £0.65 |
| Sainsbury’s | Cous Cous | 110 | 200g | £0.70 | £1.50 |
| Sainsbury’s | Chocolate Bar | 110 | 85g | £1.65 | £2.10 |
| Sainsbury’s | Fries | 900 | 750g | £2.50 | £3.65 |
| Sainsbury’s | Chicken Nuggets | 450 | 400g | £1.55 | £3.75 |
| Sainsbury’s | Fish Fingers | 280 | 360g | £3.00 | £3.35 |
| Sainsbury’s | Mayonnaise | 270 | 180g | £2.00 | £2.60 |
| Sainsbury’s | Garlic Bread | 195 | 190g | £1.00 | £2.00 |
| Sainsbury’s | Sausages | 615 | 304g | £3.60 | £2.15 |
| Sainsbury’s | Beef Burgers | 454 | 230g | £2.59 | £3.00 |
| Sainsbury’s | Margherita Pizza | 335 | 370g | £3.25 | £3.80 |
| Sainsbury’s | Bread | 600 | 400g | £1.65 | £3.70 |
| Sainsbury’s | Cookies | 200 | 150g | £1.20 | £1.50 |
| Sainsbury’s | Porridge Pot | 55 | 70g | £0.65 | £1.30 |
| Sainsbury’s | Bolognese sauce | 500 | 350g | £0.65 | £2.85 |
| Sainsbury’s | Yoghurt | 500 | 400g | £1.10 | £2.10 |
| Sainsbury’s | Self raising flour | 1,500 | 1000g | £0.79 | £1.95 |
| Sainsbury’s | Pesto | 190 | 190g | £1.30 | £3.10 |
| Sainsbury’s | Rice cakes | 130 | 130g | £1.50 | £1.50 |
| Sainsbury’s | Gravy Granules | 170 | 170g | £0.62 | £1.50 |
| Total | £40.74 | £61.00 |
Quantity vs price
Across all supermarkets, intolerance-friendly products are typically offered in smaller sizes compared to regular items, but with a higher price tag.
A pot of instant porridge costs 60p, but the gluten-free version of the same size is often double in price for only an extra 20 grams – in a sign that those with intolerances and allergies are falling victim to shrinkflation.
Similarly, for those with an allergy to cow’s milk, the cheapest almond milk typically costs £1.50 a litre, more than double the typical cost of cow’s milk.
Not only does this type of shopping basket cost more than your average shop but the quantities of items make those think twice before buying anything, Stuart says:
“It’s so much harder to find a snack now without worrying about cross-contamination or just expense. The intolerance has now forced me to get into meal prep because then at least I know I can have a good lunch and snacks through the day without worrying that I won’t find anything I can eat. Luckily, I have a personal trainer with some experience in nutrition so he helped me basically set up one standard lunch, breakfast and snack that will sort me out and I basically stick to that every week – otherwise, it’s too much of a headache thinking about what I can eat rather than what I want to eat.”
Are you Just About Managing, Losing Control, Exploring Solutions, or Ready for Help?
Take our Wellness Check to find out where you stand financially and get tailored steps to improve your situation.
The importance of checking for intolerances
Ali Orr, nutritionist at YorkTest, a food sensitivity test specialist, highlights the negative consequences of eating foods that aren’t catered specifically to your dietary needs:
“When eating a diet that isn’t specific to your needs you may be living with symptoms that could easily be avoided with a few tweaks to your food choices. Common symptoms such as gas, bloating, headaches, feeling exhausted, and skin rashes, to name a few, could all be down to eating a diet that is not suitable for your individual needs.
“Because you can be intolerant to any food or ingredient it can be difficult to work out through exclusion alone. People often assume, for example, it is an ingredient such as wheat and conclude that sandwiches using bread are the cause of symptoms, but it may be that the sandwich filling, such as egg or cheese, is causing the issues.
“Food intolerance testing helps to narrow down the specific foods that can be causing the symptoms and allows you to be much more particular with your dietary choices. A simple YorkTest finger-prick blood test can take away the guesswork and help support a symptom free life.
“Continuing to eat foods you are intolerant to, although not life-threatening, can mean putting up with uncomfortable and unpleasant symptoms and really take the joy out of everyday life.”
With rising costs in food, household bills and mortgages, it can be difficult to ensure that you keep on top of your budget. If you’re struggling to meet payments, reach out to a debt expert who can work with you to get your finances under control.
