Asda unveils £73m investment to help people handle soaring cost of living

The supermarket chain says it has “dropped and locked” the price of over 100 popular products and will continue to lock the price down until the end of the year.

It has also told 120,000 hourly paid shop floor workers that their pay will increase to £10.10 per hour from July – up from £9.66.

The union GMB says the pay rise comes after campaigning by its own members.

Asda products covered by the dropped and locked promise include a range of household items, including fresh fruit and vegetables, fresh meat, store cupboard favourites like rice and noodles as well as soft drinks, desserts and frozen products. On average, prices will fall by 12%.

Mohsin Issa, co-owner of Asda, said: “We know household budgets are being squeezed by an increasing cost of living and we are committed to doing everything we can to support our customers, colleagues and communities in these exceptionally tough times.

“We’re standing side by side with the families and communities who are juggling so many demands at the moment.

“We’re taking unprecedented action to give families some additional stability and certainty in their weekly shopping by lowering and locking over 100 prices until the end of the year.

“We’re also proud to be investing in increasing the pay for our hardworking store colleagues and continuing to support the communities we are part of.”

Nadine Houghton, GMB national officer, said: “It is fantastic news that people working in Asda stores will have more money in their pockets. It is what they deserve and urgently needed with the rising cost of living.

“GMB members in stores across the country have been campaigning hard to get Asda bosses to deliver better pay. We’re glad they have listened.

“Retail workers, predominantly women, face the reality of living with low pay every day. Employers everywhere need to step up and properly reward these key workers who keep our high streets running.”