Rising Cost of Christmas Dinner: GCSE Business in the News

Have a go at this teaching activity, which includes a downloadable worksheet and suggested answers.

What's the story?

The cost of ingredients for a traditional Christmas dinner for a family of four will be higher this year compared to last year, according to a report by Kantar Worldpanel that tracks supermarket prices. Their measure of the typical cost of the meal is £31.71, up 1.3% from Christmas 2022. This is below the current overall inflation rate in the UK of 5.6%.

The item in the Christmas dinner that has increased the most in price is cranberry sauce, which is over 26% more expensive than last year. In contrast, the cost of sparkling wine for the meal is almost 6 percent cheaper than in 2022. Sprouts and Christmas pudding are also less expensive.

The report suggests continued discounting and promotions by supermarkets in the lead up to Christmas has helped ease grocery inflation over the last four weeks compared to previous months. Kantar is forecasting record sales for supermarkets this festive season as shoppers spend more on their Christmas provisions.

Rising costs of Christmas Dinner ingredients