The surging cost of living is causing Australians to seek bargains and switch to generic brands.
New research from Compare the Market shows almost half of shoppers are switching to home brands, which is saving them an average of 41%.
It was found that Victoria was the most frugal state, with 53% of shoppers switching to generic brands to save money, which is ahead of the national 49%.
Victoria beats South Australia (46%), New South Wales (47%), Queensland (48%) and Western Australia (48%).
Compare the Market’s Chris Ford said brand loyalty is declining due to shoppers being stung by high prices.
“Families have been doing it tough for long enough and with high prices in almost every aisle at the supermarket, it’s hardly surprising to see so many Australians opting for generic brands over big names,” Ford said.
Data shows that Australians spend on average A$213.64 on groceries weekly, which is an 11.5% increase compared to the $191.66 average in January. This adds up to around $1,142.96 for groceries alone for the year.
Compare the Market found that Australians switch to generic brands for many essentials. The main categories where people have switched are milk (65%), cleaning products (58%) and bread (57%).
Ford said that after crunching the numbers, Compare the Market found significant savings.
“We crunched the numbers at major supermarkets and found a 50% reduction when opting for a cheaper brand multipurpose cleaner, a 38% saving by switching to home-brand bread, and even a 27% price difference between brand-name and generic brand milk,” he said.
A trolley with 13 common brand-name grocery items was around $79.15 compared to $46.35 for generic brand alternatives, marking a $32.80 saving.
