0:00:02 > 0:00:05There's a lot we don't know about the food on our plates.
0:00:05 > 0:00:09And the shops and the labels DON'T always tell you the whole story.
0:00:09 > 0:00:12I think they encourage you to buy more than you need
0:00:12 > 0:00:15and that causes a lot of waste.
0:00:15 > 0:00:18Whether you're staying in or going out,
0:00:18 > 0:00:21you've told us you can feel ripped off by the promises made
0:00:21 > 0:00:25for what you eat... AND what you pay for it.
0:00:25 > 0:00:30It makes my blood boil, because I feel like they're tricking people.
0:00:30 > 0:00:35From claims that just don't stack up to the secrets behind the packaging,
0:00:35 > 0:00:37we uncover the truth about Britain's food.
0:00:37 > 0:00:40So that you can be sure you're getting what you expect
0:00:40 > 0:00:44at the right price! Your food. Your money.
0:00:44 > 0:00:48This is Rip Off Britain.
0:00:48 > 0:00:50Hello and welcome to Rip Off Britain,
0:00:50 > 0:00:52Now, when you feel you've had a raw deal,
0:00:52 > 0:00:56this is the programme which will set about to discover why.
0:00:56 > 0:00:58This series we're looking at food,
0:00:58 > 0:01:00something very close to our own hearts and which, of course,
0:01:00 > 0:01:03makes up a really big chunk of all our spending.
0:01:03 > 0:01:05And indeed, with what we eat accounting for so much
0:01:05 > 0:01:08of EVERY household budget,
0:01:08 > 0:01:10you want to make absolutely sure that you really are getting
0:01:10 > 0:01:12the very best value for what you buy, but, you know,
0:01:12 > 0:01:14with food prices rising all the time,
0:01:14 > 0:01:16that's not always so easy.
0:01:16 > 0:01:19So, it's no wonder that you've been telling us that, all too often,
0:01:19 > 0:01:22you feel that you're forking out rather more than you should
0:01:22 > 0:01:24for your food and your drink.
0:01:24 > 0:01:27But today we'll be getting to the bottom of whether that is the case,
0:01:27 > 0:01:30looking at some of the prices we pay in shops, restaurants,
0:01:30 > 0:01:33even on the go as we work and if we discover
0:01:33 > 0:01:34that we're paying over the odds,
0:01:34 > 0:01:39we also have advice on what you can do to try and keep those bills down.
0:01:39 > 0:01:43Coming up, we'll be checking out why soft drinks in pubs
0:01:43 > 0:01:45can mean hard times for your wallet.
0:01:45 > 0:01:48At the end of it all, it's a drop of syrup and a bit of fizzy water
0:01:48 > 0:01:52- and this is what you pay three quid for.- Yeah.- Shock, horror!
0:01:52 > 0:01:55And there are more vegetarians than ever before,
0:01:55 > 0:01:58but are they getting a raw deal when eating out,
0:01:58 > 0:02:00paying more than they would for meat?
0:02:00 > 0:02:05Stuffed butternut squash, vegetarian, £11.45,
0:02:05 > 0:02:08more expensive than scampi.
0:02:08 > 0:02:11For the same price and sometimes even less,
0:02:11 > 0:02:15than the cost of a long car journey, cheap, no-frills flights
0:02:15 > 0:02:18mean that these days, we can just zip around the globe
0:02:18 > 0:02:21for next to nothing, but the rise of the cheap seats
0:02:21 > 0:02:24has also brought a whole stack of extra costs.
0:02:24 > 0:02:27There are baggage charges, seat charges,
0:02:27 > 0:02:30and, of course, the price of food and drink on flights,
0:02:30 > 0:02:33all of which can, occasionally, add up to rather more
0:02:33 > 0:02:35than the price of the fare itself.
0:02:35 > 0:02:39So, not surprisingly, some of you feel very aggrieved
0:02:39 > 0:02:41about what you see as sky-high charges
0:02:41 > 0:02:43for those on board refreshments.
0:02:43 > 0:02:47Especially when you compare them with the prices on the ground.
0:02:50 > 0:02:551958, and the first transatlantic passenger jet flight.
0:02:55 > 0:02:59Back then, flying used to mean glamour and excess and, as a result,
0:02:59 > 0:03:03was pretty much out of the reach of many.
0:03:03 > 0:03:06But in the mid-90s, all of that changed.
0:03:06 > 0:03:07The thrift class was born
0:03:07 > 0:03:11and Britain fast became a nation of no-frills flyers.
0:03:11 > 0:03:14And whilst convenience and low-prices
0:03:14 > 0:03:17became the order of the day, the little luxuries
0:03:17 > 0:03:22that we had previously taken for granted now came at a price.
0:03:22 > 0:03:26When you've taken the trouble to track down the best price possible
0:03:26 > 0:03:27on the cost of your flight,
0:03:27 > 0:03:30and you've packed everything in an overnight case,
0:03:30 > 0:03:33so that you don't have to pay any excess baggage,
0:03:33 > 0:03:36then it's only right that you should feel quite smug
0:03:36 > 0:03:39that you've got by far the best deal you possibly could
0:03:39 > 0:03:42on the cost of your trip, but of course there is another way
0:03:42 > 0:03:45in which the low-cost airlines are able to take
0:03:45 > 0:03:47quite a lot of your money.
0:03:47 > 0:03:51And that's when it comes to being fed and watered during the trip.
0:03:53 > 0:03:56The prices on board can be eye-watering.
0:03:56 > 0:04:01One travel website did a survey during last summer's holiday season.
0:04:01 > 0:04:05They claim that the average mark-up on ten UK and Irish airlines
0:04:05 > 0:04:08compared to the nearest equivalent High Street price
0:04:08 > 0:04:12was 372% for savoury snacks.
0:04:12 > 0:04:17And, even more, 386%, when it came to soft drinks.
0:04:20 > 0:04:23- Do you ever fly low cost airlines? - Only occasionally.
0:04:23 > 0:04:26When you do, what do you do about food, do you buy on-board?
0:04:26 > 0:04:28- No, I take it with me. - Why do you do that?
0:04:28 > 0:04:30Because it's already rather overpriced.
0:04:30 > 0:04:35- I never buy the food on the plane. - Why not?- Too expensive, horrible.
0:04:35 > 0:04:38What do you do about food, do you buy it on-board
0:04:38 > 0:04:40- or take it with you? - I take it with me, if I can.
0:04:40 > 0:04:43- Why is that?- It's cheaper, it's nicer.
0:04:43 > 0:04:45It's better value, yeah.
0:04:45 > 0:04:48So, you'd never think of buying the higher cost food on the plane?
0:04:48 > 0:04:52- No, I wouldn't.- I think, as a mum, you tend to take it with you. Yes.
0:04:52 > 0:04:55Yes, I think it's very expensive, for a bacon sandwich,
0:04:55 > 0:04:56it's about nearly a fiver.
0:04:56 > 0:05:00- It's too expensive.- OK, I have got your snacks for the plane.
0:05:00 > 0:05:03Paul and Leslie Scanlon from Manchester wrote to us
0:05:03 > 0:05:06after becoming increasingly frustrated with the prices
0:05:06 > 0:05:09that the budget airlines charge for food in the air.
0:05:09 > 0:05:13And Paul misses the old days, when meals were always included.
0:05:13 > 0:05:16I don't think we should be paying for the food and drink on planes,
0:05:16 > 0:05:20because it should be part of the price of the air ticket itself,
0:05:20 > 0:05:23you know, you're a captured audience, it's like open season,
0:05:23 > 0:05:26so they then come up with this rule, "We'll charge you what we want,
0:05:26 > 0:05:30"because we know you're going to be thirsty, we know you'll be hungry,
0:05:30 > 0:05:33"so we'll dive in there and show you the menu and then it'll be,
0:05:33 > 0:05:36'I'll have some of that'. Not me. I'll sit there starving,
0:05:36 > 0:05:39die of thirst before I would buy anything on a plane.
0:05:39 > 0:05:43In fact, the mark-ups can be sky-high.
0:05:43 > 0:05:47For instance, if you buy a tube of Pringles on a Ryanair flight,
0:05:47 > 0:05:50now that will set you back 400% more
0:05:50 > 0:05:52than you'd expect to pay in a supermarket.
0:05:52 > 0:05:55And if you've got a sweet tooth and you fancy a Twix,
0:05:55 > 0:05:59when you're on an easyJet flight, it'll cost you £1.20,
0:05:59 > 0:06:02which is almost double what you'd expect to pay on the High Street.
0:06:02 > 0:06:06And exactly the same goes for KitKat when you're flying with Jet2.
0:06:06 > 0:06:09Now, the airlines know, of course, that they can get away with this,
0:06:09 > 0:06:12because they do, quite literally, have a captive market.
0:06:12 > 0:06:15You see what you're paying for it and you know
0:06:15 > 0:06:19what you've paid for it back at home, so why the big difference?
0:06:19 > 0:06:23You know, they're getting more and more money out of you,
0:06:23 > 0:06:26which just sticks in my craw, it really does.
0:06:26 > 0:06:28It just goes on and on until you arrive where you've arrived
0:06:28 > 0:06:31and you think, "God, I'm glad that's over!"
0:06:31 > 0:06:35But Paul's idea of hell has become an nice little earner
0:06:35 > 0:06:37for the low-cost airlines,
0:06:37 > 0:06:41so much so that it's now a vital part of their business plan.
0:06:41 > 0:06:46Simon Calder is a frequent flyer and he's got some top tips.
0:06:46 > 0:06:49I don't really have a problem with the amount that they charge
0:06:49 > 0:06:53on board flights, because frankly, if you're half-organised,
0:06:53 > 0:06:56you should be able to do better yourself.
0:06:56 > 0:06:58The ideal way to do this is, of course,
0:06:58 > 0:07:02go shopping at your local delicatessen, maybe the market,
0:07:02 > 0:07:05maybe the supermarket, and stock up
0:07:05 > 0:07:07with lots of good, fresh food for the journey.
0:07:07 > 0:07:09Are you allowed to take that through?
0:07:09 > 0:07:12You are, as long as it hasn't got anything threatening, like yoghurt,
0:07:12 > 0:07:16which counts as a liquid, but anything else, you know,
0:07:16 > 0:07:19beautiful, fresh sandwiches or whatever, is fine.
0:07:19 > 0:07:23You can take that through security and eat it on board.
0:07:23 > 0:07:27Now, when you get to the position that many of us are in,
0:07:27 > 0:07:29thinking, "Gosh, we've so much to do."
0:07:29 > 0:07:32You can't get round to getting sandwiches in advance,
0:07:32 > 0:07:36it's still, I reckon, almost always better to buy the stuff
0:07:36 > 0:07:38from the shops, from the restaurants from the cafes,
0:07:38 > 0:07:42on the ground, than it's to buy in the air.
0:07:42 > 0:07:45With the ban on liquids, taking your own drinks on board
0:07:45 > 0:07:47has become that bit more difficult.
0:07:47 > 0:07:51The airlines are more than happy to quench your thirst,
0:07:51 > 0:07:52but only at a price.
0:07:52 > 0:07:57A 500 millilitre bottle of water can cost as little as 23p
0:07:57 > 0:08:01in the supermarket, yet order one on board an Aer Lingus flight
0:08:01 > 0:08:04and, you could be paying as much as £2.20 for it,
0:08:04 > 0:08:10and that's over 900% more.
0:08:10 > 0:08:13But, Simon has a top tip to save you money.
0:08:13 > 0:08:17So many people don't realise this, you've got your water bottle,
0:08:17 > 0:08:21you get to security, oh my goodness, it's going to be confiscated.
0:08:21 > 0:08:25That doesn't happen to me, because I turn up with an empty water bottle,
0:08:25 > 0:08:28take it through and although it's almost impossible these days
0:08:28 > 0:08:31to find a water fountain once you're air-side,
0:08:31 > 0:08:35through security, every single catering outlet
0:08:35 > 0:08:40in every single airport I have ever asked, is obliged to give you water.
0:08:40 > 0:08:44The airlines don't agree that their food prices are too high.
0:08:44 > 0:08:48No surprises there, then. Saying that comparing what THEY charge
0:08:48 > 0:08:50with what you pay at the supermarket,
0:08:50 > 0:08:52isn't comparing like with like,
0:08:52 > 0:08:57as supermarkets have economies of scale and lower supply chain costs,
0:08:57 > 0:09:01compared to the specialised, loading costs that airlines face.
0:09:01 > 0:09:05All the airlines we spoke to told us that they believe their products
0:09:05 > 0:09:08are good quality and value for money,
0:09:08 > 0:09:10when compared to similar outlets.
0:09:10 > 0:09:13Such as coffee shops, bars or restaurants.
0:09:13 > 0:09:17Some, like easyJet, also point out that they have meal deals
0:09:17 > 0:09:19that offer additional value.
0:09:19 > 0:09:21While Aer Lingus said that their prices
0:09:21 > 0:09:23have not gone up for two years.
0:09:23 > 0:09:26And Ryanair reiterate that passengers are free
0:09:26 > 0:09:31to bring your own snacks on board if they wish.
0:09:31 > 0:09:34Back in Manchester, Paul and Leslie are busy planning
0:09:34 > 0:09:37their next trip away and Paul has a clear message
0:09:37 > 0:09:42for anyone thinking of parting with their cash in the air.
0:09:42 > 0:09:46I feel like standing on a soapbox and saying, "Come here,
0:09:46 > 0:09:49come round here, let me tell you what it's all about.
0:09:49 > 0:09:52"What's going on, in this airport and on the aircraft,
0:09:52 > 0:09:53"as soon as you arrive.
0:09:53 > 0:09:56"Psychological, you'll pay and pay and pay
0:09:56 > 0:10:00and then wonder why you've no money left halfway through your holiday."
0:10:05 > 0:10:08Now, if there's one thing that can really put a dampener on a night out
0:10:08 > 0:10:11in the pub, it's rising drink prices, and that's particularly
0:10:11 > 0:10:14the case even if you're not having anything alcoholic.
0:10:14 > 0:10:17The evening can soon lose it's fizz when you realise that the
0:10:17 > 0:10:22soft drinks might've worked out more expensive than the average pint.
0:10:22 > 0:10:24And while for many pubs that, of course, can be
0:10:24 > 0:10:26a valuable source of income in these tough times,
0:10:26 > 0:10:30it doesn't go down very well with consumers, or even, it seems,
0:10:30 > 0:10:32with some publicans themselves.
0:10:32 > 0:10:35Because here's one who's bucking the trend.
0:10:37 > 0:10:39At the Churchill Arms in Hampshire,
0:10:39 > 0:10:42they've come up with a very nifty idea to not only get more
0:10:42 > 0:10:45trade through the door, but to tackle what's long been
0:10:45 > 0:10:50one of pub-goers' biggest gripes, the price of soft drinks.
0:10:50 > 0:10:53Landlady Tanya Wynyard would like to be able to cut them
0:10:53 > 0:10:56right across the board, but that just isn't realistic.
0:10:56 > 0:11:00In order to keep going, sometimes you can't lower the prices.
0:11:00 > 0:11:04Soft drinks and food side of the business are what hold up
0:11:04 > 0:11:06the rest of the business, really.
0:11:06 > 0:11:11So instead, keenly aware that it is designated drivers who often
0:11:11 > 0:11:15feel most aggrieved about having to pay high prices for soft drinks,
0:11:15 > 0:11:17Tanya has hit on a novel solution.
0:11:17 > 0:11:19I try and encourage my customers that
0:11:19 > 0:11:23if there's one driving that they don't have to pay for their drinks.
0:11:23 > 0:11:24- That's it.- Cheers.
0:11:24 > 0:11:28The gentleman's given me his car keys and I've issued him with a designated
0:11:28 > 0:11:32driver key ring, and then he's chosen his soft drink
0:11:32 > 0:11:36and he can present his key ring every time he wants a drink now
0:11:36 > 0:11:39and get free drinks for the rest of the night.
0:11:39 > 0:11:42Well, Tanya's initiative certainly seems to be proving popular.
0:11:42 > 0:11:45It's a win-win, really. My friends get to drive home, I have Coke.
0:11:45 > 0:11:48It's quite expensive even when you're driving to go out
0:11:48 > 0:11:52with your friends, so, yeah, the free drinks, it's pretty spot on.
0:11:52 > 0:11:54Mm. Good incentive to go out.
0:11:56 > 0:11:59But Tanya is one of only a handful of landlords across the country
0:11:59 > 0:12:03to give her non-drinking customers a helping hand,
0:12:03 > 0:12:06and when you see how lucrative the fizzy stuff is, you can understand
0:12:06 > 0:12:10why other publicans are so keen to protect their profits on them.
0:12:10 > 0:12:15The average cost of a soft drink in pubs and bars is £1.54,
0:12:15 > 0:12:18which may not sound a lot, but make that a pint,
0:12:18 > 0:12:22and it'll most likely set you back around £3.31.
0:12:22 > 0:12:26Now, that's 28 pence more than the typical price of a pint of beer,
0:12:26 > 0:12:29which is closer to £3.03.
0:12:30 > 0:12:35So how much of the cost of a draught soft drink is likely to be profit?
0:12:35 > 0:12:37I've asked a food scientist to take a look.
0:12:39 > 0:12:41Well, we're in the food testing laboratory,
0:12:41 > 0:12:46and fortunately we have with us our food test boffin, Peter Maynard.
0:12:46 > 0:12:48So, Peter, today we're going to talk about soft drinks.
0:12:48 > 0:12:51I mean, this looks a pretty ominous carton.
0:12:51 > 0:12:53The soft drinks you get in pubs,
0:12:53 > 0:12:57they're actually made up in the pub from a syrup and a fizzy water,
0:12:57 > 0:13:01so if you look carefully at the barman dispensing your drink,
0:13:01 > 0:13:05you'll see that he uses a gun, and there are two pipes coming from it.
0:13:05 > 0:13:08One is with fizzy water and one is with this syrup.
0:13:08 > 0:13:10There are seven litres of syrup here,
0:13:10 > 0:13:14- and altogether it make up 45 litres of drink.- Whoa.
0:13:14 > 0:13:16What, this will make up 45 litres?
0:13:16 > 0:13:19That will make up 45 litres of drinks.
0:13:19 > 0:13:21'Peter has agreed to play barman for us,
0:13:21 > 0:13:25'and make up a draught soft drink as it would be served in a pub.'
0:13:25 > 0:13:28So you just put the syrup in and now you're going to top
0:13:28 > 0:13:32- it off with fizzy water. - Top it up with fizzy water.
0:13:32 > 0:13:35- And is that what we get when we order?- That's what you get.
0:13:35 > 0:13:37So let's go back then to cost.
0:13:37 > 0:13:41What exactly is in this drink that anybody might ask for in a pub
0:13:41 > 0:13:43- or in a restaurant?- Certainly.
0:13:43 > 0:13:46Well, there's obviously the syrup from the container,
0:13:46 > 0:13:50and that will cost maybe 15 pence, something like that.
0:13:50 > 0:13:54- And yet we're paying anything up to £3.- You are indeed.
0:13:54 > 0:13:56The end of it all is a drop of syrup and a bit of fizzy water
0:13:56 > 0:13:58and this is what you pay three quid for.
0:13:58 > 0:14:00- Yep.- Shock, horror!
0:14:00 > 0:14:01PETER LAUGHS
0:14:01 > 0:14:04I'm fairly horrified by it, yes. It's, it's...
0:14:05 > 0:14:08There is a large profit to be made in this.
0:14:09 > 0:14:12So why are we being charged around three quid a drink,
0:14:12 > 0:14:15when the true cost is really just a fraction of that?
0:14:15 > 0:14:16Well, there is
0:14:16 > 0:14:19some work that goes into turning this syrup into a drink.
0:14:21 > 0:14:24And of course, there are costs that come out of the price the customer
0:14:24 > 0:14:28pays to cover things like staff, electricity and, of course, VAT.
0:14:28 > 0:14:32But even with all that factored in, it seems highly likely that
0:14:32 > 0:14:36soft drinks are making healthy profits for the pub trade.
0:14:36 > 0:14:40A profit most consumers say is just too big.
0:14:41 > 0:14:44I think the price of soft drinks in pubs is
0:14:44 > 0:14:48extortionate in comparison to how much you can buy them
0:14:48 > 0:14:51for and in comparison to the cost of alcohol as well.
0:14:51 > 0:14:54I've been in some places where you have to pay,
0:14:54 > 0:14:58like, £2.50 for a soda and lime, which is a bit much.
0:14:58 > 0:15:00I do think it's a little bit unfair, and it makes me think,
0:15:00 > 0:15:02"Well, why don't I just have a beer?".
0:15:02 > 0:15:05It may be unpopular, but it doesn't look like our pockets
0:15:05 > 0:15:08are going to get relief any time soon.
0:15:08 > 0:15:11Robin Black writes with the publicans' trade paper.
0:15:11 > 0:15:14Soft drinks are really important to pubs.
0:15:14 > 0:15:17About one in four of all drinks sold in a pub will be a soft drink,
0:15:17 > 0:15:19and that's getting bigger.
0:15:19 > 0:15:24More people are eating food in pubs, and about 44% of meals are consumed
0:15:24 > 0:15:26with a soft drink, so ultimately,
0:15:26 > 0:15:28although people are complaining, they are paying for it.
0:15:28 > 0:15:30And also, if I ran a business,
0:15:30 > 0:15:33I'd want to ring fence margin where I could get it. Times are tough.
0:15:33 > 0:15:36You don't want to suddenly start cutting prices now.
0:15:36 > 0:15:39Now obviously, all business need to make a profit,
0:15:39 > 0:15:41but there's something that may stick in your throat a little bit
0:15:41 > 0:15:44when it comes to comparing the price of a soft drink
0:15:44 > 0:15:47with that of a pint of beer.
0:15:47 > 0:15:5154.3 pence of every pint of beer goes straight to the taxman
0:15:51 > 0:15:53and Excise Duty.
0:15:53 > 0:15:56But soft drinks simply are not taxed in the same way.
0:15:56 > 0:15:59So should it be the case that a pint of a soft drink
0:15:59 > 0:16:03should at least be the equivalent amount cheaper than a pint of beer?
0:16:03 > 0:16:08Well, we did our own pub crawl. I'm afraid that wasn't quite the case.
0:16:09 > 0:16:13We sent our researchers to some pubs in Liverpool City Centre.
0:16:13 > 0:16:18Now, 11 of the pubs they visited offered orange juice by the pint.
0:16:19 > 0:16:20In three of those pubs,
0:16:20 > 0:16:24the OJ was actually more expensive than their cheapest pint of beer.
0:16:25 > 0:16:29In four places, the juice was cheaper, but not by nearly as much
0:16:29 > 0:16:33as the 54 pence they were saving by not having to pay the tax
0:16:33 > 0:16:35they would on the alcoholic drink.
0:16:36 > 0:16:40In fact, out of 11 pubs, only three passed the 54 pence tax
0:16:40 > 0:16:43saving onto their soft drink customers.
0:16:43 > 0:16:46So in other words, most of those pubs are likely to be making
0:16:46 > 0:16:50more money out of their soft drinkers than their beer drinkers.
0:16:52 > 0:16:55But maybe there is an alternative to the high cost of soft drink,
0:16:55 > 0:17:00because behind the bar, why not just order a pint of good
0:17:00 > 0:17:04old corporation pop, in other words better known as tap water?
0:17:04 > 0:17:06And the law is on the consumer's side,
0:17:06 > 0:17:10because since 2010, the legal requirement for any pub,
0:17:10 > 0:17:12restaurant, indeed, any establishment selling alcohol,
0:17:12 > 0:17:17is that they have to provide tap water absolutely free.
0:17:17 > 0:17:19But is it as simple as going into a bar
0:17:19 > 0:17:21and asking for a pint of the free stuff?
0:17:21 > 0:17:23Cheers.
0:17:24 > 0:17:26The industry is worried that if more of us
0:17:26 > 0:17:28insist on our right to free water,
0:17:28 > 0:17:32we could see even more neighbourhood pubs shut their doors for ever.
0:17:32 > 0:17:35Recent research was done which shows that publicans are getting more
0:17:35 > 0:17:37and more worried about tap water, in fact,
0:17:37 > 0:17:4163% of them said that it was damaging to the long term future of the trade.
0:17:41 > 0:17:44If you have people sitting in your pub who are essentially not
0:17:44 > 0:17:47paying for anything but using all the overheads, your electricity,
0:17:47 > 0:17:50space where other people might be paying for a product,
0:17:50 > 0:17:52listening to live music you've put on or anything like that,
0:17:52 > 0:17:55so it's becoming a bigger and bigger issue.
0:17:55 > 0:17:58We asked the British Beer and Pub Association what
0:17:58 > 0:18:01they thought about the price of soft drinks in pubs.
0:18:01 > 0:18:04They told us they believe that they're competitively priced,
0:18:04 > 0:18:07especially compared with what's charged in restaurants.
0:18:07 > 0:18:10They added that the prices are inevitably going to be
0:18:10 > 0:18:13higher than in the supermarket, for the same reason that a pint of beer
0:18:13 > 0:18:18is more expensive, because of the greater cost and service provided.
0:18:20 > 0:18:24But back in Hampshire, landlady Tanya thinks that, by giving drivers
0:18:24 > 0:18:27free soft drinks, rather than losing money,
0:18:27 > 0:18:31she might overall be boosting trade at the Churchill Arms.
0:18:31 > 0:18:34You'd hope that they'd have a car full of people when they come,
0:18:34 > 0:18:37and you might keep those customers in the pub longer
0:18:37 > 0:18:40if they're driving everyone home and everyone's enjoying themselves
0:18:40 > 0:18:42and they might stay longer.
0:18:47 > 0:18:49Still to come on Rip-Off Britain...
0:18:49 > 0:18:52What's behind our rising food prices?
0:18:52 > 0:18:56We reveal why the cost of a Sunday lunch is going up and up.
0:18:56 > 0:18:59We had a disastrous year last year with the weather.
0:18:59 > 0:19:02We probably left a quarter of our crop in the ground.
0:19:02 > 0:19:03We just couldn't get it out.
0:19:04 > 0:19:08You know, I often think that the fun of going out for a meal is
0:19:08 > 0:19:10very often just looking through the menu
0:19:10 > 0:19:12and deciding what you're going to order.
0:19:12 > 0:19:16Now sometimes there is almost too much to choose from.
0:19:16 > 0:19:19Unless, that is, you're one of the estimated three million
0:19:19 > 0:19:21vegetarians in this country.
0:19:21 > 0:19:25And while, if you don't eat meat you're probably quite used to
0:19:25 > 0:19:28having a bit less of a choice, recently you've been writing
0:19:28 > 0:19:32to us about something that's perhaps a little bit more unexpected.
0:19:32 > 0:19:36Because, despite the fact that the raw ingredients usually cost
0:19:36 > 0:19:40quite less than meat, in some of the best known chains,
0:19:40 > 0:19:44vegetarian meals are actually more expensive than other dishes.
0:19:44 > 0:19:48So, when one viewer got in touch asking us to find out why,
0:19:48 > 0:19:51well, that was a challenge we couldn't resist.
0:19:57 > 0:20:01Over the last two decades, Britain has undergone a food revolution.
0:20:01 > 0:20:04We eat out more than ever before.
0:20:04 > 0:20:07It's reckoned 19 million of us do it at least once a week
0:20:07 > 0:20:10in a market thought to be worth around £80 billion.
0:20:13 > 0:20:17Pat and Mick Brown from Suffolk are self-confessed foodies,
0:20:17 > 0:20:20but despite the array places to eat near their home,
0:20:20 > 0:20:25they find themselves limited in their choices for one reason.
0:20:25 > 0:20:28I became a vegetarian when I was a teenager.
0:20:28 > 0:20:30I didn't like the way animals were treated
0:20:30 > 0:20:33so I said I wasn't eating meat any more.
0:20:33 > 0:20:36For me, it was a New Year's resolution
0:20:36 > 0:20:41at the turn of the century, 2000-2001, and I thought if I could
0:20:41 > 0:20:46find a way of avoiding eating meat and fish, then I'll give it a try.
0:20:46 > 0:20:50They've watched as, overall, British menus have become
0:20:50 > 0:20:53more imaginative and creative, as far as they're concerned,
0:20:53 > 0:20:57the veggie options have been neglected.
0:20:57 > 0:21:00I think most vegetarians you speak to, their heart sinks
0:21:00 > 0:21:03when they see vegetarian lasagne,
0:21:03 > 0:21:07which nine times out of ten is probably out of a freezer,
0:21:07 > 0:21:11or at the moment goat's cheese seems to be rolling everywhere,
0:21:11 > 0:21:15so everywhere seems to be goat's cheese...tart.
0:21:15 > 0:21:18That lack of choice was most recently highlighted
0:21:18 > 0:21:21when they went out to celebrate Mick's birthday.
0:21:21 > 0:21:24Penne pasta with tomato sauce.
0:21:24 > 0:21:28The pasta was overcooked, it was like slime.
0:21:28 > 0:21:32Increasingly, it's not just the range of dishes that bothers them,
0:21:32 > 0:21:36the price can often leave a nasty taste in their mouths,
0:21:36 > 0:21:40especially compared with the meat and fish alternatives.
0:21:40 > 0:21:45I have a few menus here from various local hostelries
0:21:45 > 0:21:50and establishments, and what Pat I are finding is that
0:21:50 > 0:21:54the vegetarian dishes are priced pretty much the same
0:21:54 > 0:21:57as the meat and fish dishes.
0:21:57 > 0:21:59See if I can give you an example here.
0:21:59 > 0:22:04Stuffed butternut squash, vegetarian, £11.45.
0:22:04 > 0:22:08More expensive than scampi, cod.
0:22:08 > 0:22:12The same price as a salmon dish.
0:22:12 > 0:22:15It's a feeling that unites vegetarians
0:22:15 > 0:22:16right across the country.
0:22:16 > 0:22:18One of the things that members tell us
0:22:18 > 0:22:22is they find it very challenging to get the same choice as meat eaters.
0:22:22 > 0:22:24That's a big issue.
0:22:24 > 0:22:28A fairly common kind of comment is that people get offered pasta
0:22:28 > 0:22:30that has been frozen and microwaved,
0:22:30 > 0:22:33and must have cost pennies to produce.
0:22:33 > 0:22:35The other issue is the whole quality issue,
0:22:35 > 0:22:39that we want the same quality meal as meat eaters get.
0:22:40 > 0:22:42Indeed, a quick look at what's on offer
0:22:42 > 0:22:45in the national restaurant chains seems to bear this out.
0:22:45 > 0:22:48We've been checking out the menus of some of the best-known
0:22:48 > 0:22:52names in the restaurant business and in most cases, they charge
0:22:52 > 0:22:57just slightly less for the vegetarian meals than they do for the meat ones.
0:22:57 > 0:22:59On average, it's about 20-40p.
0:22:59 > 0:23:03There are a few restaurants where they actually charge significantly
0:23:03 > 0:23:06less for their vegetarian dishes, but surprisingly,
0:23:06 > 0:23:11there are those restaurants who charge more for vegetarian dishes
0:23:11 > 0:23:14than they do for the meat ones.
0:23:14 > 0:23:16Take the popular pub chain Slug and Lettuce.
0:23:16 > 0:23:20Their meat lasagne costs £7.25,
0:23:20 > 0:23:23but the butternut squash, spinach and goat's cheese lasagne
0:23:23 > 0:23:26is a pound more.
0:23:26 > 0:23:29And at Gourmet Burger Kitchen,
0:23:29 > 0:23:32the classic burger costs £6.70,
0:23:32 > 0:23:36but the veggie bean burger costs £6.95.
0:23:36 > 0:23:39That's 25p dearer.
0:23:39 > 0:23:40Meanwhile at Nando's,
0:23:40 > 0:23:44the chicken breast fillet costs £5.95,
0:23:44 > 0:23:49but the roasted Portobello mushroom burger costs £6.30,
0:23:49 > 0:23:52so 35p more expensive than the meat.
0:23:52 > 0:23:54It's hardly controversial to say that
0:23:54 > 0:23:59when you go round the supermarket, generally meat is more expensive
0:23:59 > 0:24:02than veg, so how can a restaurants justify charging more
0:24:02 > 0:24:06for a vegetarian dish that's made with cheap ingredients?
0:24:06 > 0:24:10Are we right to expect a veggie meal to cost less?
0:24:10 > 0:24:14To put that to the test, we asked home economist Gillian Marczak
0:24:14 > 0:24:19to take a good look at those meals from Nando's and Gourmet Burger Kitchen
0:24:19 > 0:24:21to see if she could see any obvious reason
0:24:21 > 0:24:23why the veggie options should cost more?
0:24:23 > 0:24:26First, Gourmet Burger Kitchen.
0:24:26 > 0:24:29She's taking both burgers apart to see what's inside.
0:24:29 > 0:24:32Firstly the bean burger.
0:24:32 > 0:24:36Breaking it carefully and there I can find they've got butter beans,
0:24:36 > 0:24:39little bits of dried chillies in there along with other spices.
0:24:39 > 0:24:42I can see red kidney beans
0:24:42 > 0:24:46and then I moved on to the beefburger, which was an awful lot easier,
0:24:46 > 0:24:49because all I really did was break it in half,
0:24:49 > 0:24:52and there I found there was really just only meat.
0:24:52 > 0:24:55A few spices on the outside.
0:24:55 > 0:24:57On a first look at those ingredients,
0:24:57 > 0:25:02Gillian can't see any obvious reason why the veggie burger costs more.
0:25:02 > 0:25:04I went to my local supermarket
0:25:04 > 0:25:08and I purchased a steak burger, which cost me £1.25,
0:25:08 > 0:25:11and I purchased the ingredients for what I thought
0:25:11 > 0:25:15was in the vegetarian bean burger.
0:25:15 > 0:25:18That would have cost me 65p approximately.
0:25:18 > 0:25:22I think that's where GBK are probably making their most profit,
0:25:22 > 0:25:25from the vegetarian bean burger.
0:25:25 > 0:25:28So if the basic ingredients can cost around half
0:25:28 > 0:25:32the price of those in the meaty one, why does Gourmet Burger Kitchen
0:25:32 > 0:25:35charge more for the bean than the beef?
0:25:35 > 0:25:39It would be easy to think they are making their profits at the expense
0:25:39 > 0:25:42of vegetarians, but Gillian says it's not necessarily that simple.
0:25:43 > 0:25:48The only thing that I don't know, as far as the company is concerned,
0:25:48 > 0:25:53is to whether they actually have to produce these bean burgers on site.
0:25:53 > 0:25:56Of course, if they have to make them on-site,
0:25:56 > 0:25:59then there's an extra cost involved with that.
0:26:01 > 0:26:04And it turns out that is the explanation.
0:26:04 > 0:26:08Gourmet Burger Kitchen told us that their veggie burger
0:26:08 > 0:26:11is made from scratch by the chefs in each of their restaurants,
0:26:11 > 0:26:14combining over 12 different ingredients,
0:26:14 > 0:26:18so it's more labour-intensive to produce than their beefburgers
0:26:18 > 0:26:22which are delivered fresh every day direct from the butcher.
0:26:23 > 0:26:27Next, Gillian dissects the food from Nando's,
0:26:27 > 0:26:29the vegetarian Portobello and halloumi burger,
0:26:29 > 0:26:32and the chicken breast fillet burger.
0:26:32 > 0:26:35Tops off. Have a look what's underneath.
0:26:35 > 0:26:38This time, the veggie option doesn't work out cheaper than meat,
0:26:38 > 0:26:41thanks to those pricey Portobello mushrooms.
0:26:41 > 0:26:45The raw ingredients actually cost about the same.
0:26:45 > 0:26:50The costings I have put together are round about £1.34 for both products.
0:26:50 > 0:26:54Even so, you'll still have to pay more for the veggie option.
0:26:56 > 0:27:00Nando's told us that the ingredients in their Portobello mushroom burger
0:27:00 > 0:27:03do make it more expensive to produce, but the company
0:27:03 > 0:27:07point out that they do have veggie choices that are cheaper than the chicken.
0:27:07 > 0:27:11They also said that because chicken remains their most popular dish,
0:27:11 > 0:27:12they buy more of it
0:27:12 > 0:27:17and can pass on these economies of scale as benefits to customers.
0:27:17 > 0:27:21Similarly, the Slug and Lettuce pub chain explained the difference
0:27:21 > 0:27:24in price between their meat and veggie lasagne
0:27:24 > 0:27:27because the popularity of the meat version gives them
0:27:27 > 0:27:29more bulk buying power with their supplier.
0:27:29 > 0:27:33And they said that while the majority of their veggie meals
0:27:33 > 0:27:36are less expensive than their meat dishes, some do use
0:27:36 > 0:27:40costlier ingredients such as goat's cheese or butternut squash.
0:27:42 > 0:27:45But in any case, Suffolk chef Shane Aldridge agrees
0:27:45 > 0:27:47that it's not just the cost of the ingredients
0:27:47 > 0:27:51that determines the price you will pay for a veggie meal out.
0:27:52 > 0:27:55Sometimes the general public don't understand all of the costs
0:27:55 > 0:27:57they're paying when they eat out.
0:27:57 > 0:28:01They tend to look at what is on the plate and identify that
0:28:01 > 0:28:04with being where the value lies, on the plate,
0:28:04 > 0:28:07rather than the bigger picture of all the other overheads
0:28:07 > 0:28:12that are associated with not just that dish but the ambiance,
0:28:12 > 0:28:16staff training, keeping the heating on. Those sorts of things.
0:28:16 > 0:28:20The other thing is some vegetarian ingredients are quite high in price,
0:28:20 > 0:28:24comparable to meat.
0:28:24 > 0:28:27100 grams of cashew nuts would cost similar
0:28:27 > 0:28:30to 100 grams of beef, to be frank.
0:28:31 > 0:28:34About 10% of all meals that Shane currently sells at his pub
0:28:34 > 0:28:39are vegetarian, and he expects that number to grow.
0:28:39 > 0:28:42There's more and more people eating vegetarian food.
0:28:42 > 0:28:44There's not more vegetarians necessarily
0:28:44 > 0:28:47but there's more people enjoying vegetarian food,
0:28:47 > 0:28:52so plainly you need to be catering for people that are interested
0:28:52 > 0:28:56in eating vegetarian food and not just vegetarians particularly.
0:28:57 > 0:29:00And that is music to Pat and Mick's ears,
0:29:00 > 0:29:04because while it seems that their beef about veggie prices may be
0:29:04 > 0:29:08more complex than it first appears, what they'd like to see most
0:29:08 > 0:29:12of all is restaurants boosting their choice of meat-free meals.
0:29:12 > 0:29:14I would say, have a serious think
0:29:14 > 0:29:18about broadening your vegetarian options and you
0:29:18 > 0:29:23might be pleasantly surprised how many people take you up on them.
0:29:23 > 0:29:27Maybe even people who aren't vegetarians.
0:29:33 > 0:29:37So-called all you can eat buffets can seem like a real bargain
0:29:37 > 0:29:41for hungry diners, but who's really getting the best end of the deal?
0:29:41 > 0:29:45Food critic Richard McComb has been helping himself to some tasty
0:29:45 > 0:29:49secrets about what's really going on at the buffet counter.
0:29:49 > 0:29:51Typically in buffets, you'll see an awful lot of pasta,
0:29:51 > 0:29:54rice and noodles, and it looks all pretty good stuff to us.
0:29:54 > 0:29:58The thing with all these big foods, however,
0:29:58 > 0:30:02is that they're carbohydrates. They tend to fill you up really quickly,
0:30:02 > 0:30:05and for this reason, buffets absolutely love them.
0:30:05 > 0:30:07They want you to eat as much of this stuff as possible.
0:30:07 > 0:30:10You eat lots of carbohydrates, you're going to eat less
0:30:10 > 0:30:14of their expensive stuff, so that's the meats and the fishes.
0:30:14 > 0:30:18Of course, after a big meal often follows a big thirst,
0:30:18 > 0:30:21another money-maker for the restaurant.
0:30:21 > 0:30:25The whole issue of drinks in all you can eat buffets is a minefield.
0:30:25 > 0:30:29In some cases, buffet bosses know they might even take a bit of a hit
0:30:29 > 0:30:34on some of the food, but they know they're going to make up for it on the drinks sales.
0:30:34 > 0:30:36The flip side is that some places will
0:30:36 > 0:30:39go down the route of offering you various promotions on drink,
0:30:39 > 0:30:42so there might be free refills of soft, fizzy drinks,
0:30:42 > 0:30:45like Coke and lemonade, which looks brilliant.
0:30:45 > 0:30:47You can drink as much of the stuff as you like.
0:30:47 > 0:30:51That's exactly what the buffets want you to do, because the more of this
0:30:51 > 0:30:54fizzy, sugary stuff you drink, the more bloated you'll feel
0:30:54 > 0:30:56and the less food you're going to eat.
0:30:56 > 0:31:00As for the quality of the food, Richard says fine dining it isn't.
0:31:02 > 0:31:05The food quality is usually pretty low,
0:31:05 > 0:31:08sourcing in meats from industrial-sized farms,
0:31:08 > 0:31:10from mass caterers.
0:31:10 > 0:31:13They use frozen foods, they use processed foods.
0:31:13 > 0:31:17Actual cooking of raw, fresh ingredients is pretty negligible.
0:31:17 > 0:31:21Other tricks of the buffet trade might include staff in chef's whites
0:31:21 > 0:31:24to create the impression it's all freshly cooked,
0:31:24 > 0:31:28and small plates with not much room to put things on.
0:31:28 > 0:31:30There's a reason why these places have sprung up
0:31:30 > 0:31:34throughout our high streets and suburban centres.
0:31:34 > 0:31:37That's because they're money pits.
0:31:37 > 0:31:40Everything in these buffets is about driving down costs.
0:31:40 > 0:31:44You are just a unit, not really a customer, in there to eat as much
0:31:44 > 0:31:48cheap food as possible, fill you up with drinks, get you at the door.
0:31:51 > 0:31:54How much do you spend on your weekly food shop?
0:31:54 > 0:31:57For many of us, it's becoming more and more difficult to stick
0:31:57 > 0:32:01to a budget because the prices on the shelf keep going up.
0:32:01 > 0:32:04But is there more to these rocketing prices than simply
0:32:04 > 0:32:05supermarket profits?
0:32:08 > 0:32:11Kate Larkin from Manchester is a busy mother of three.
0:32:11 > 0:32:15Like most of us these days, she has to manage her money carefully
0:32:15 > 0:32:18starting with a strict weekly shopping budget.
0:32:18 > 0:32:22You can get some good offers if you look.
0:32:22 > 0:32:26I do buy offers and multipacks of things
0:32:26 > 0:32:29but I won't buy stuff just because it's on offer.
0:32:29 > 0:32:33I'll only buy the things that are on offer that we would eat.
0:32:36 > 0:32:37But until recently,
0:32:37 > 0:32:40we've become a nation accustomed to falling prices
0:32:40 > 0:32:44and mothers like Kate didn't have to pay such close attention
0:32:44 > 0:32:45to the food budget.
0:32:45 > 0:32:49Food prices dropped throughout much of the second half
0:32:49 > 0:32:53of the last century, primarily because of scientific advancements,
0:32:53 > 0:32:56the green revolution that allowed us to grow a lot more food
0:32:56 > 0:33:00on the same amount of land relatively straightforwardly.
0:33:00 > 0:33:01The world was rosy.
0:33:01 > 0:33:06We're getting into a situation now where the demand for food
0:33:06 > 0:33:08is outstripping supply.
0:33:08 > 0:33:12There isn't enough land to produce that, so as soon as demand
0:33:12 > 0:33:15starts outstripping supply, you're in a situation where prices
0:33:15 > 0:33:17are going to go up and the food is going to go
0:33:17 > 0:33:19to the people who will pay most for it.
0:33:19 > 0:33:23Bold and urgent steps must be taken to tackle spiralling food prices,
0:33:23 > 0:33:26the head of the United Nations has warned.
0:33:26 > 0:33:31The rising cost of food has become one of the most pressing problems facing the world economy.
0:33:31 > 0:33:36The first really big food price spike was 2007-2008,
0:33:36 > 0:33:39and food prices went through the roof on a global basis.
0:33:39 > 0:33:43We have got used to stack them high, sell them cheap.
0:33:43 > 0:33:44Buy lots of food and waste it,
0:33:44 > 0:33:48and in the future we won't be able to afford to do that.
0:33:48 > 0:33:51As the cost of fresh meat and veg goes up and up,
0:33:51 > 0:33:54many of us are having to be more selective about the food
0:33:54 > 0:33:55we put into our shopping trolleys.
0:33:55 > 0:33:58Does this mean we have to have a real rethink
0:33:58 > 0:34:00about some of our favourite meals?
0:34:00 > 0:34:02Meals like the Sunday roast.
0:34:04 > 0:34:07Kate's still serving up Sunday lunch for her family
0:34:07 > 0:34:12but she's noticed that the cost of the ingredients has been shooting up.
0:34:12 > 0:34:15The price of a Sunday roast has gone up but as a family,
0:34:15 > 0:34:19it's one meal that we all thoroughly enjoy.
0:34:19 > 0:34:21It's a good meal, it's a healthy meal
0:34:21 > 0:34:26and I just think it sets you all up for your working week.
0:34:26 > 0:34:29It's one of our favourite food rituals
0:34:29 > 0:34:34and we cooked 1.5 billion traditional roast dinners in 2012,
0:34:34 > 0:34:38so how exactly has the price changed?
0:34:38 > 0:34:41We looked at the cost of a typical roast dinner with meat
0:34:41 > 0:34:44and all the trimmings, potatoes, Yorkshire puddings,
0:34:44 > 0:34:48vegetables and gravy, and compared the current price for each
0:34:48 > 0:34:51ingredient with what you'd typically have paid a year ago.
0:34:51 > 0:34:56One supermarket comparison website has found that the average price
0:34:56 > 0:34:59for a meal jumped up by nearly 20% from an average
0:34:59 > 0:35:03of around £8.87 to £11.01.
0:35:03 > 0:35:08That's almost four times the average rise in food prices,
0:35:08 > 0:35:10so why such a leap?
0:35:10 > 0:35:12The answer begins in the soil.
0:35:12 > 0:35:16The humble potato. It's the staple of many meals,
0:35:16 > 0:35:19but could it soon be priced of our plates?
0:35:19 > 0:35:23I've come to a very wet Kent, the Garden of England, to find out
0:35:23 > 0:35:28why the wholesale price of potatoes has doubled since 2012.
0:35:32 > 0:35:35So Matthew, tell me about the problems that you've been
0:35:35 > 0:35:37having on the potato farm with the weather.
0:35:37 > 0:35:39It's a really carried on from 2012.
0:35:39 > 0:35:42We had a disastrous year last year with the weather.
0:35:42 > 0:35:45We probably left a quarter of our crop on the ground.
0:35:45 > 0:35:46We just couldn't get it out.
0:35:46 > 0:35:49Have the problems that you're describing with the harvesting
0:35:49 > 0:35:52had any impact on the price of the potato?
0:35:52 > 0:35:57From 2012, the price per kilo went up, to the consumer, 20p,
0:35:57 > 0:36:02so for a kilo of potatoes,
0:36:02 > 0:36:07would cost the household 80p, and that would feed a family of five.
0:36:07 > 0:36:11- Did the price to you go up? - It went up a little bit.
0:36:11 > 0:36:15Which helped us because of the hard work to try to get them
0:36:15 > 0:36:18in and out, and also our costs over the last five years,
0:36:18 > 0:36:24have probably gone up 20-25%, so we've needed a barrier to help us.
0:36:24 > 0:36:27So has this year been any better?
0:36:27 > 0:36:29So Matthew, we are standing here in the pouring rain,
0:36:29 > 0:36:33it's a miserable day, we're standing in a sea of mud with a few little
0:36:33 > 0:36:36green bits, what's been going on?
0:36:36 > 0:36:39The rain just hasn't stopped.
0:36:39 > 0:36:42Five weeks ago, the harvest was going smoothly up until then
0:36:42 > 0:36:46and then we've not had the machines out here since.
0:36:46 > 0:36:48We've got 80 tonnes left in this field,
0:36:48 > 0:36:52that should have been done and sent in to be packed and consumed.
0:36:52 > 0:36:56It doesn't look like we'll get them out.
0:36:56 > 0:36:58Thankfully, the rain came late in the harvest
0:36:58 > 0:37:02and although the last of the crop has been tricky to unearth,
0:37:02 > 0:37:05earlier good weather means any price rises this year
0:37:05 > 0:37:07shouldn't be on the scale we saw last.
0:37:09 > 0:37:14If only it was just spuds that have been going up in price but it seems
0:37:14 > 0:37:18the cost of almost every ingredient of a real roast dinner has been heading upwards.
0:37:18 > 0:37:22How come? A professor of crop science should know.
0:37:22 > 0:37:25Let's take a typical Sunday lunch, let's start with the meat,
0:37:25 > 0:37:28the main factor influencing the price of the feed,
0:37:28 > 0:37:33and that relies to a great extent on wheat, maize and soya,
0:37:33 > 0:37:36and supplies of these cereals around the world.
0:37:36 > 0:37:38These are at a reasonably all-time high
0:37:38 > 0:37:42but they are expensive compared to historical trends.
0:37:42 > 0:37:44And what about the greens?
0:37:44 > 0:37:47The price of beans fluctuates depending on where they are sourced.
0:37:47 > 0:37:50Some of our green beans come from Kenya and so are influenced
0:37:50 > 0:37:53by the factors affecting farmers growing those in Kenya.
0:37:53 > 0:37:59Lastly but definitely not least, why is the price of pudding on the rise?
0:37:59 > 0:38:01If you think about a chocolate pudding,
0:38:01 > 0:38:05the price of cocoa from which we get chocolate is at a two-year high.
0:38:05 > 0:38:09This is due again to enormous demand from Europe for supplies
0:38:09 > 0:38:14of cocoa, but also some dry periods in the African monsoon
0:38:14 > 0:38:17that affect the producing regions in Ghana.
0:38:17 > 0:38:21So it seems the wallets of British shoppers are being squeezed
0:38:21 > 0:38:25by a double whammy of growing demand across the globe
0:38:25 > 0:38:27for food and extreme weather events.
0:38:27 > 0:38:32It's clear there is more to the cost of the Sunday lunch than meets the eye.
0:38:32 > 0:38:34Rising food prices don't always have anything to do
0:38:34 > 0:38:37with producer profits, and I'm sorry to say,
0:38:37 > 0:38:41relief from bigger food bills doesn't seem to be on the horizon.
0:38:41 > 0:38:44The influence of consumers on the price of production is relatively limited.
0:38:44 > 0:38:47Producers are really restricted. They need to make a profit
0:38:47 > 0:38:51from their business, but their profits are controlled
0:38:51 > 0:38:53by their fixed and variable costs,
0:38:53 > 0:38:56that are really reducing the margins at the farm gate.
0:38:56 > 0:39:00It's the balance between a supply of food and the demand for food,
0:39:00 > 0:39:03but also whether events in different parts of the world will also
0:39:03 > 0:39:07influence the price on a week by week basis.
0:39:07 > 0:39:11So with British consumers only a small cog in the global food chain
0:39:11 > 0:39:15and the price of food increasing across the planet, it seems unlikely
0:39:15 > 0:39:19we are going to escape the cost of our weekly shop edging upwards.
0:39:19 > 0:39:24But back at the Larkin family home in Manchester, Kate at least
0:39:24 > 0:39:27has found a strategy to stretch the family budget
0:39:27 > 0:39:31as far as she can without giving up that Sunday roast.
0:39:31 > 0:39:35I would definitely still keep cooking a roast dinner on Sunday, definitely.
0:39:35 > 0:39:38I have my staple items that I get every week,
0:39:38 > 0:39:43and then I build up my shopping list from what I'm going to cook
0:39:43 > 0:39:46that week, and I just put those items in my trolley
0:39:46 > 0:39:51and I'm not swayed by any of the advertising that stores do
0:39:51 > 0:39:54to make us buy things that we don't necessarily always want!
0:39:59 > 0:40:03Here at Rip-Off Britain, we're always ready to investigate
0:40:03 > 0:40:07more of your stories on any subject.
0:40:07 > 0:40:11Confused over your bills or just trying to wade through
0:40:11 > 0:40:13never-ending small print?
0:40:13 > 0:40:16When they sit you down to sign up, they don't really give you
0:40:16 > 0:40:19the chance or the time to read through all of that small print.
0:40:19 > 0:40:23Maybe you are unsure what to do when you discover you have lost out
0:40:23 > 0:40:27and that so-called great deal has ended up costing you money.
0:40:27 > 0:40:32These people have ripped me off well and truly.
0:40:32 > 0:40:35Or you might have a cautionary tale of your own
0:40:35 > 0:40:38and want to share the mistakes you made with us.
0:40:38 > 0:40:40You can write to us at...
0:40:47 > 0:40:49Or send us an e-mail to...
0:40:52 > 0:40:56The Rip-Off team is ready and waiting to investigate your stories.
0:41:00 > 0:41:03I think it goes without saying that absolutely none of us
0:41:03 > 0:41:06like paying any more than we think we should for anything,
0:41:06 > 0:41:08let alone for the essentials in life,
0:41:08 > 0:41:12but as we've been hearing, sometimes the reasons our food costs
0:41:12 > 0:41:16what it does can be a bit more complex than it might at first appear.
0:41:16 > 0:41:21The cost of the actual food itself may be only a relatively small part of the final price tag.
0:41:21 > 0:41:25But you know, while pricing isn't always clear-cut, there are all
0:41:25 > 0:41:28sorts of other costs and overheads that can come into the equation.
0:41:28 > 0:41:31You can't help thinking that at least in some of the situations
0:41:31 > 0:41:34we've been talking about, we should not have to pay
0:41:34 > 0:41:37quite as much as we do, so we end with simple advice.
0:41:37 > 0:41:41If you're not happy with what you're being asked to pay, don't buy it.
0:41:41 > 0:41:44That's good advice actually right across the board.
0:41:44 > 0:41:48Always make sure you really are comfortable with what you spend,
0:41:48 > 0:41:50even if that does mean you have to shop around a bit.
0:41:50 > 0:41:53I'm afraid that's where we have to leave it for today
0:41:53 > 0:41:56and we will be back with more investigations very soon,
0:41:56 > 0:41:57but until then from all of us...
0:41:57 > 0:42:00- Thank you for your company, we'll see you soon.- Goodbye.