UK food and drink inflation reached 4.4% during May, increasing pressures on household finances and on grocery retailers.

Overall UK inflation held steady at 3.4% during the year to May, according to the Consumer Price Index (CPI) from the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

On a monthly basis, CPI rose by 0.3% in May 2025, compared with May 2024. The Bank of England has predicted that inflation will peak at 3.7% between July and September, before dropping back to its 2% target.

However, food and drink prices saw a higher rate of inflation during May, at 4.4%. This was partially offset in the overall figures by downward movement of prices in transport.

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The continued high level of inflation means an increased squeeze on household finances, and more pressure on supermarkets and other food retailers to keep prices down.

“Food and drink inflation shot up in May 2025, reaching 4.4% compared to 3.4% in April. These figures are being driven by rising energy and ingredients costs. Food manufacturing is an energy intensive sector, and wholesale gas prices are 7.8% higher compared to last May, as UK businesses face significantly higher industrial energy costs compared to other nations. Meanwhile, the price of ingredients has also surged. For example, in the last two years, the price of cocoa has tripled, while wholesale butter prices are also 55% higher than last year. Recent and upcoming regulations are also bringing additional costs to manufacturers,” said The Food and Drink Federation (FDF) lead economist Dr Liliana Danila.

“With these price increases being coupled with a drop in consumer confidence and a fall in retail sales, food manufacturers have been absorbing rising costs for several years. Recent geopolitical uncertainty is also likely to result in higher pressure on energy and imports, and so unstable manufacturing costs are likely to persist. As a result, we now expect to reach our forecast of 4.8% food and drink inflation for December sooner than anticipated.”