People in the United Kingdom are paying less for Aussie classics like Tim Tams and Vegemite, but how can this be possible?
A recent comparison of seven Australian products found in UK supermarkets found they were often cheaper to buy in Britain than at Coles and Woolworths.
Aussies pay $6 for a packet of Tim Tams, or $3/100g, compared to $2.38 a packet in the UK, or $2.36/100g.
Meanwhile, Vegemite retails for $2.27/100g at Coles or $2.21 at Woolworths compared to $1.93/100g in the UK.
The products are manufactured in Australia, which has raised questions on supermarkets’ abilities to markup prices.
Food manufactures have consistently said supermarkets make the final call on product prices.
Speaking to the parliamentary committee on the cost of living on Friday, Woolworths’ chief commercial officer said the question of why Australians are paying more is a “great question for Arnott’s.”
Coles ‘ head of public affairs, Adam Fitzgibbons, said, “The question almost presupposes that Arnott’s sells its products to us at the same price that it would sell those products to other retailers internationally.”
“That’s not something that I or Coles would have visibility of at all, but I think that’s certainly a question that would be very best directed towards Arnott’s.”