Milk, cheese and eggs push food price rises to 14-year high

Milk, cheese and eggs push food price rises to 14-year high

The soaring price of milk, cheese and eggs has pushed food inflation to its highest level for 14 years.

Food prices rose at their fastest pace since 2008 in the year to August as the war in Ukraine continued to help drive up prices at supermarket tills.

Falling petrol and diesel prices meant the overall inflation rate eased slightly but it remains near a 40-year high, official figures show.

Rising costs are eating into budgets, with prices rising further than wages.

Overall UK inflation, which measures the rate at which prices rise, eased for the first time in almost a year in August, slipping to 9.9% from July’s 10.1%.

The figure was not as high as economists had feared but some have warned the inflation rate is likely to continue to rise, noting that the cost of food, clothing and services – which include things such as shops and restaurant prices – were all continuing to rise sharply.

The Bank of England has warned inflation could top 13% this year, and is expected to keep raising interest rates to try to control it.

However, the government plan to try and prevent widespread hardship by limiting rises in household energy bills, is likely to mean inflation will now not rise as high as previously expected.