While the ongoing conflict in the Middle East threatens to send food prices soaring, a 29-year-old Tesco receipt has emerged to remind us of a time when £30 could fill your basket
We’re all feeling the squeeze of the cost-of-living crisis, but a viral blast from the past is putting our current grocery agony into sharp perspective.
A 1997 Tesco receipt that has gone viral online features prices that feel impossible by 2026 standards – and with the ongoing conflict in the Middle East threatening to send bills even higher, the good old days have never felt further away.
The original shopper walked away with a full basket for just £26.27. Today, the average UK household is shelling out upwards of £120 a week to keep the cupboards filled.
I visited my local Tesco supermarket to see if I could recreate that 1997 shop, and the results left me feeling sickened. From 65p Weetabix soaring to £3.50, and cooking oil jumping from 53p to a staggering £3.00, my receipt nearly quadrupled to a whopping £62.70.
As Tesco boss Ken Murphy warns that the Iran war is creating “further uncertainty” for our wallets, walking the aisles and looking for bargains feels a lot harder than it used to be.
READ MORE: Experts warn of ‘worryingly high’ food price rises as bills increase by £470
Murphy said it was “impossible to speculate” how much food inflation could rise by because of the fall out from soaring energy costs due to the conflict. It follows reports that Britain risks facing shortages of chicken, pork and other supermarket supplies this summer if the Iran war drags on.
While Tesco remains one of the more budget-friendly options on the high street, this 29-year-old receipt going viral proves just how much further a pound used to go. Disregarding the £10 redacted item, this shopper spent just £16.27. In 2026, it seems £16 won’t even buy you the basics for a single dinner.
Just walking around the aisles, it’s clear that many shoppers are digging out bargains. I watched shoppers muttering at shelf edges, picking up staples only to put them back in defeat. I can’t blame them, especially after seeing how cheap the items used to be back in the 90s. While most of the basket had risen starkly in price, the comparison showed how differently inflation hits our cupboards, with not everything rising uniformly.
Some staples are closer to their 90s counterparts in price, with yogurt only costing 23p more, and mayonnaise hiking in price by 37p. A branded deodorant in 1997 cost £1.79, and I bought the same brand one today for £2.00. The shower creme was £1.85, yet a bottle of Radox body wash was just £1 for me.
Meanwhile, a bouquet of flowers set me back £5 (£1.66 in 1997), cat food has jumped from 49p to £5, and a bottle of Coca-Cola cost £2 (35p in 1997).
At the beginning of the month, The Food and Drink Federation (FDF), which represents 12,000 food and drink manufacturers, warned food inflation could hit nine percent before the end of the year.
It comes as one fifth of the world’s oil passes through the Strait of Hormuz, which Iran forced closed following US and Israel strikes in late February. Global markets have spiralled, and with President Trump launching a counter-blockade of the narrow waterway, prices are expected to rise.
Even if the Strait reopened soon, and things returned to normal, the damage is already done. Harvir Dhillon, Economist at the British Retail Consortium (BRC) warns that once prices spike, they rarely retreat. “Wages, transport costs and raw materials all remain permanently high,” he told the Mirror. While wages have slowly caught up with the inflation triggered by the invasion of Ukraine, this new shock threatens to reset the clock.
Professor Tim Lang, Emeritus Professor of Food Policy at City University, told the Mirror that the UK is drastically exposed and needs a renewed focus on increasing domestic production. He argues that that food security itself is now a key component of “modern hybrid warfare.”
“Food is now in the frontline of weaponisation,” Lang explains. “One in five trucks on UK roads is [carrying] food, yet we produce only about 60 percent of our food. There’s next to no storage. Some countries are stockpiling to protect their consumers – the UK isn’t.”
Lang points out, “Even if the ceasefire holds and a lasting peace deal frees up the Strait of Hormuz, food price inflation is unlikely to subside. It’s likely to rise to 8 or 9% by mid summer. Optimists think it might drop but most analysts think the upward pressure will continue. We’re in a world of multiple and on-going shocks from climate change, geopolitics and all the features of modern ‘hybrid warfare’.”
