Iceland Defies Inflation, Keeps Key Ready Meals at £1 for Two Decades

Iceland has kept the price of several of its best-selling ready meals at £1 for 21 years, defying decades of inflation that have significantly increased the cost of other everyday items. The supermarket chain attributes its ability to maintain these prices to a long-standing commitment to value.

Ready meals such as lasagne, spaghetti bolognese, chicken curry and rice, and cheese and tomato thin crust pizza have remained at £1. These products were originally launched at 99p in 1996 and saw a small increase to £1 in 2005, a price that has not changed since. Iceland checked its pricing archives and confirmed that these meals have risen by only 1p over three decades.

In comparison, the price of petrol has increased by 173 percent, diesel by 198 percent, milk by 81 percent, and a pint of lager by 179 percent over the same period. The cost of a Freddo chocolate bar has risen by 250 percent, from 10p to 35p.

Iceland also confirmed that its cottage pie and sweet and sour chicken with rice have maintained their £1 price point, which was set in 2005. This week, the company is marking the 30th anniversary of its £1 range by introducing or cutting the price of an additional 750 products to £1. Household staples including tea bags, baked beans, and bread, along with meals like toad in the hole and pasta bake, will now be priced at £1 or less.

Research conducted by Iceland indicates that 69 percent of Britons are concerned about rising food prices, with 55 percent reporting that these increases cause stress and anxiety. According to a survey released last month, 74 percent of people believe supermarkets should intervene to help manage prices during the current cost of living crisis.

"The cost of living has transformed almost beyond recognition over the last 30 years," an Iceland spokesperson stated. "Petrol has nearly tripled, a pint costs almost three times as much and even a Freddo has shot up by 250 percent, but some of our best-selling family meals have increased by just one penny."

The spokesperson added, "We know customers are counting every pound, which is why we're doubling down on value. With 750 products now at £1 or less, shoppers can still pick up everyday essentials, family favourites and complete meals at prices that have become increasingly hard to find anywhere else."

Iceland's executive chairman, Lord Walker of Broxton, also serves as the Government's cost-of-living champion. He recently advocated for ministers to reconsider the triple lock on pensions, arguing in a parliamentary debate that the state pension policy was unsustainable and that successive governments had failed to address the issue.