As the cost of grabbing lunch on the go rises we compare prices at some of the UK's biggest retailers.
Picking up a sandwich, crisps and drink meal deal when you're out and about used to guarantee a bargain lunch.The average cost of a meal deal at five of the biggest retailers, has gone up by more than a fifth, or 21%, since the pandemic.
And while Boots, Tesco and Morrisons all have slightly cheaper deals for members of their loyalty schemes, those have gone up too, along with food prices generally. "A lot of money-saving experts will say you can make sandwiches cheaper at home, but life can be quite bleak at times and if you want a bit of a treat in the middle of the day, it's not a bad one."Typically a meal deal will save you one or two pounds. For example a smoked ham and mustard sandwich, bottle of fizzy water and packet of plain crisps would cost £4.50 if bought separately but you can get it for £3.50 in Sainsbury's meal deal.
That's why there's a "bit of a grudge" against getting water on a meal deal, even if you're really thirsty, she says. "That's what two-for-one, or meal deals, are all about - to make people buy more than they would otherwise," she says."You automatically see those before you look at the products on display. Once we have our attention focused, it is hard to shift it," she says.
An extra tax on sugary and salty food is supposed to encourage shoppers to make healthier choices. But the meal deal removes that price lever,Students she surveyed in 2018 said they picked the most expensive drink to "get a bargain". So there is actually a perverse incentive to pick the less healthy, higher priced, option.
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