Does anybody else find Australian food expensive compared to food in British supermarkets?

Question

In Victoria margarine from the supermarket costs around 2 to 3 dollars when in the UK the same type of margarine can go for as little as 80 cence.. and butter is just the tip of the iceberg, everything from bread to meat is more expensive in Australia and yet the guidebooks always make the claim that the food downunder is relatively cheap to buy in comparison to British food. I find these inflated costs bizaare since Australia produces much of its own food whereas the UK tends to rely on imports rather than home grown produce.

Answer 1

Trenardy is on the mark. Many processed foods, including bread, I found were definitely less expensive in the UK. However, fresh meat for example, is still very much cheaper than the UK.

We have a lot of greedy middle-men ripping us off, its not the small retailer or farmer. It also applies to many imported commodities other than food, and it appears that in many cases prices are being doubled on equivalent UK or US prices, then a bit more added to buy the family 4WDs!

Just seen another example of how we get shafted in Oz. New Impreza WRX STI starts at 34,995 in the US, thats a bit over 38,000 Oz dollars...list price in Oz starts at around 60.000!!!

Answer 2

You should see the prices in Tahiti and the surrounding islands (Bora Bora, Huahine etc) ... especially the Smirnoff and other imported spirits, they go for around AU$90 where here they are less than half that.

After I got back from holiday I didn't find aussie food expensive anymore...

Answer 3

Im not sure where you shop (supermarket) but nearly everything in Woollies (safeway) or Coles is import stuff, the Australian owned & grown is costs alot more.. Unless of course you go to a market or small fruit and veg place, where they are fairly cheap and some actually grow their own produce...

Even tin stuff, have a look on the tin and see where its made.. I can tell you, most of it doesnt come from Australia... Even the home brands, not aussie...

Things go up in costs all the time and I would guess that the guidebooks were probably published a few year ago? So thats why they would say that things here are cheap! Because a few year ago things were cheaper..

I spend on a family of 3 about 200 a week, where as give me 5 year ago that would be 200 for 3 weeks in food...

Do more shopping around, look for that small independant grocer... Vic markets use to be good, but I havent been there in about 5 years...

Answer 4

$1 is not one pound it is about $2.20 is that where you are making a mistake?

Answer 5

My British defacto said what a load of bull **** as his parents went back over there for a holiday and came back saying that the only thing that was cheap to buy in Britain was the umbrellas. Besides who want to eat British meat when you guys have got foot and mouth and mad cow disease floating around.

Answer 6

not sure where your shopping but when i was in the UK  food prices were ridiculously expensive

Answer 7

I do all my shopping at Aldi, because the corner stores charges three times more.

Answer 8

Maybe, but things are generally cheaper in Australia than in the UK thanks to the weak Aussie dollar.

Answer 9

I find fresh food (and eating out) cheaper in Australia than the UK.

So maybe the guide books are talking about fresh food, rather than processed foods?

.

Answer 10

Are you comparing our prices in $AU to the english pound? Because if thats the case then 80 English cents is around 2 - 3 $AU anyways.

And as the other person said the Australian grown stuff is alot more exspensive, so just buy the import stuff.

Answer 11

I spent 6 weeks in Australia and I found most products the same or more expensive than in the UK. It does obviously depend on what you buy and where you buy it from. I expect that it maybe due to the costs of sourcing products from a vast country and the current drought that is affecting the country may be contributing to the high costs of fresh produce.