Ocado and Lidl continue to lead in growth this summer, with the retailers’ sales increasing by 14.1% and 11.2%, respectively in the four weeks to 9 August, according to the latest figures from NielsenIQ (NIQ).

M&S, Aldi and Sainsbury’s also experienced significant sales growth at 6.7%, 5.3% and 5.2% respectively. Meanwhile, Tesco achieved sales growth of 4.8%, Waitrose saw a 4.7% rise and Iceland’s sales grew by 2.9%.

Morrisons experienced a modest increase of 0.7%, while Asda’s sales declined by 2.3% and Co-op’s by 3.8%.

NIQ found that consumers prioritised home-cooked dinners amid the growing food inflation, which led to a 3.1% decrease in average spend per visit. 

Mike Watkins, head of Retailer and Business Insight at NIQ, said: “After the three heatwaves in early summer, this reset was expected, and the slowdown in spend was felt across the industry. The exception being the discounter channel where growth was more buoyant at +6.6%.

“The convenience channel was particularly impacted with sales down -1.1% as was the online grocery channel at -2.2%.”

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The total till sales growth decreased to 3.7%, compared to 5.8% in the previous month.

However, in-store visits increased by 6.2% as shoppers sought affordable alternatives, with promotions accounting for 23% of all value sales in stores.

The strongest-performing categories were dried vegetables and pulses (+28%), fresh pastry and dough (+15%) and packaged grocery (+4.2%).

Watkins added: “The start of peak summer holidays also disrupted shopping habits more than usual as the uptick in food inflation would have given many shoppers a reason to delay some non-essential spend for a few weeks.

“However, with shoppers looking to dine in at home, in the summer this often means more alfresco with barbeques replacing some meals out or ordered in. Supermarkets will be optimistic about a strong end to summer 2025.”