Groceries

Adele and I were watching a news item a while back about how a war - not one of the ten Trump has miraculously ended - was screwing up global supply chains with the inevitable knock-on effects. There was a vox pop segment to the report in which the intrepid interviewer stood in some run-down British high street to get the verdict of us ordinary people about the parlous state of our nation. One very loud pink-faced woman declared vehemently "It's all the cost of the living."

We laughed, We knew what she meant, but her unintentional extra 'the' could have been bemoaning the nexus of challenging issues (over-population, rampant consumerism, the huge burden of social welfare) faced by most post-industrial nations. The phrase stuck with me and I revisit "the cost of the living" later in today's new poem.

the cost of living increase

For now though, groceries - and yes, the prices do keep on going up (see image above). The impact of this latest idiocy, the Iran War, will take its toll on the cost of living, not just at the petrol pumps but in our supermarkets. Some people are surprised by the prediction that the UK will suffer most of all the G20 nations, but they need to understand that the huge underlying hit from Brexit, estimated at £100 billion every year, is the reason for us being in such an invidious position, So frankly, curse everyone who was stupid enough to ever believe Brexit was a good idea in the first place..  

I do most of my grocery shopping at Lidl (conveniently within walking distance) and Sainsbury's (preferred, but to which I have to drive). I'm not extravagant in what I purchase and even so  I reckon the cost per week has gone up by at least 50% in the last couple of years and some items have doubled in price. That's way above the rate of inflation. Supermarkets are ripping us off over the cost of groceries. Here are some figures:

The operating profit of market leader Tesco leapt from £1.8 billion in 2020 to £3.1 billion in 2025, an increase of 72%. Part of that goes to pay their boss his £10 million annual salary. I refuse to shop there. Aldi’s operating profit rose from £289 million in 2020 to £435 million in 2025, an increase of 50% over the same period. Even relative newcomer Lidl saw its operating profit rise by 297%, from £79 million in 2020 to £314 million in 2025. Those figures are shocking and have been dubbed 'greedflation' by consumer watchdog organisations. 

If you're wondering about Sainsbury's, their operating profit of just over £1 billion has risen by a mere 7% over the same period. Some might say that's bad business but others would call it ethical. I don't have a Co-op near me, but I get the impression they are on the ethical end of the spectrum as well.

How much simpler life was when we bought local produce at local shops, supporting local growers and businesses. I don't suppose we'll ever get back to that, except perhaps on our holidays. (Deep sigh.)

a Greek greengrocery store

Right, back to the shouty pink-faced lady in the run-down British high-street and her "cost of the living" malapropism which inspired my latest poem (still a work in progress)...
  

The Cost Of The Living

Imagine them all laid out in the world's window,

the living, some on plush, polished and preened

with a price-tag that reads ten million each, and

another card warning 'do not touch'. Below them

are rows of finely arrayed superior citizens each

in their individual cardboard dimples like prized

pieces of fruit. They're a mere million each. You

may handle them carefully, for they bruise easily.

Then there are plastic crates full of ordinary folk

indistinguishable from one another all reasonably

priced at fifty thousand each, good honest staple

of any societal diet these days. Right at the front

of this tiered display a line of hothouse beauties,  

more to draw your eye than anything. They don't

last and are over-priced at five thousand a bunch.

Down on the floor in barrels are heaped the spoil

on which the rest are piled, huge mounds of dirty 

and unwashed labourers, a mere thousand a time,

a dozen for ten. Buy today! Prices rise tomorrow!

says the shopkeeper and he's worth many trillions.

Thanks for reading. Have a good week, S ;-)