UK harvest helping mask effects of Brexit food inflation
Products such as tomatoes, apples, strawberries, raspberries and asparagus can be sourced in the UK over warmer months - and are saving retailers from having to buy in imports made pricier by the weak pound since the Brexit vote.
The British Retail Consortium (BRC) said this was partly shielding shoppers from price rises but warned that this would change as winter sees stores become more reliant on imported fresh food.
Monthly figures from the BRC-Nielsen shop price index showed food price inflation crept higher to 1.3% in August, up from 1.2% in July.
But within this, fresh food inflation slowed for the second month in a row, to 0.8%, from 1% the month before.
BRC chief executive Helen Dickinson said: "The slowdown in fresh food inflation for a second month kept a lid on overall increases in the price of the weekly grocery shop.
"The seasonal availability of fruit and vegetables from UK suppliers is currently shielding shoppers from the impact of higher import prices.
"However, as winter approaches and our dependence shifts to imported goods, that will change."
Source: news.sky.com
