Figures last month from the First Steps Nutrition Trust campaign group show that the cost of infant formula is close to historical highs, having fallen just 50p last year to £11.99 per tin, despite an investigation from the UK competition watchdog.
The price of infant formula was £11.10 in 2021, while Aldi’s own-label formula costs £6.99.
The Government’s response to the competition watchdog investigation is overdue, as it was due to be published more than a week ago.
Julie Ashfield, chief commercial officer at Aldi UK, said shoppers “should not be paying over the odds for the essentials”.
Customers paying over the odds
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) published its report into the baby milk market in February this year. It said customers were continuing to overpay for formula, with a combination of factors leading to “poor outcomes for parents”.
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Sarah Cardell, chief executive of the CMA, said parents could be saving around £300 per year by switching to a lower-priced brand, but many believe that higher prices must mean “better quality”.
She said: “Every parent wants to give their baby the best possible start in life.
“Many [who] need, or choose, to formula feed pick a brand at a vulnerable moment, based on incomplete information, often believing that higher prices must mean better quality.”
NHS advice states that all brands of formula will meet a baby’s nutritional needs, regardless of brand or price.
The CMA came up with several solutions to the problem, including regulating prices, allowing more promotional activity for baby food or improving existing regulations about how baby formula is sold.
It recommended the option of improving existing regulations, with more messaging around the fact that all baby milks offer enough nutrition available in supermarkets, as well as allowing customers to use gift cards and loyalty points for baby milk, which is currently prohibited.
The Government has not yet responded to the consultation.
