Families hit in pocket AGAIN as food prices are rising at fastest rate for 14 years

The price of food leaving the major producers, including dairies and bakeries, is running at an annual rate of increase of 6.6 per cent - the fastest since July 1993.

The increase, revealed by the Office of National Statistics yesterday, will be passed on to shoppers through higher bills at the till.

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But the official figures may be underestimating the problem. One recent supermarket study put the annual rate of increase for household food essentials at 12 per cent.

As a result, a family of four spending £90 a week on food a year ago, will be paying an extra £10 a week - an increase of £520 a year.

Freak weather - the drought of 2006 and the floods of the summer of 2007 - have combined to hit crop yields.

Vegetables and wheat have seen particularly large increases, as have milk and other dairy products.

Internationally, supplies of animal feed crops such as maize and soya have suffered, leading to higher prices of meat, particularly chicken and pork.

The higher cost of petrol means transport costs are also rising sharply, which again pushes up prices.

Higher grocery bills are a particular blow to pensioners and others on low or fixed income because these take up a huge slice of their weekly spending.

The increases have far outstripped rises in pensions.

For example the basic state pension will go up by just £3.40 a week - 3.9 per cent - from next April to stand at £90.70.

A Help the Aged spokesman said: "This situation is leading to unacceptable levels of poverty among pensioners."

Gordon Lishman, of Age Concern, said: "The Government should increase the basic state pension to at least £119 a week so that pensioners have enough money to make ends meet."

Price comparisons, collated by Mysupermarket.co.uk, show big increases in essential foods.

For example, a standard supermarket own-label large white loaf is up by 6p or 12.5 per cent in a year to an average of 54p.

Supermarket own-label spaghetti has risen by as much as 76 per cent to 79p for a 1kg pack.

Milk and dairy products have shot up in price. This is largely because many British dairy farmers have gone out of business in the last decade because they were getting such poor prices.

The resulting threat of shortages, coupled with an increase in demand for milk from China, has produced a spike in prices.

A six-pint container of milk is up 22 per cent - 36p - to £1.98.

The higher cost of animal feed has been reflected in a 17 per cent rise to £2.09 in the cost of a fresh chicken.

Johnny Stern, of Mysupermarket.co.uk, said: "It's vital that families living on a tight budget seek out special offers to avoid paying over the odds, especially at this time of year."

Yesterday's ONS figures looked at the rise in factory gate prices - that is the change in the amount manufacturers pay for raw ingredients and the amount they charge customers.

The figures have been heavily affected by oil prices, which are up by a staggering 46.6 per cent in a year.

Some economists believe the factory gate inflation means the Bank of England has little room to cut the base rate further. They argue that putting money into consumers' pockets would only stoke price rises.

Others, however, believe retailers will be forced to swallow a large part of these price rises to keep their customers.

According to retail analysts FootFall, high street shopper numbers were down by 7.5 per cent on Saturday against the same day last year.

The figure for Sunday showed a fall of 1.6 per cent.