Cost of budget pasta, bread and beef mince surges; German inflation near 50-year high– as it happened

Prices of budget pasta, crisps, bread and mince products have surged in last year, pushing up cost of living for poorest families

• Latest: German inflation highest since 1970s oil shock
• Jack Monroe: People are being priced out of their own dinner
• ONS: Budget pasta prices up 50% in last year
• But overall, cheapest groceries rising in line with food inflation, says ONS
• Sainsbury's commits 500m over two years to avoid price rises on some products

The fact that the difference between the lowest-cost version of a grocery item and the next lowest-cost version is often at least 20% highlights the importance of supermarkets offering their cheapest brands at all their stores.

In February, Asda committed to making its cheapest food ranges more widely available, after the anti-poverty campaigner Jack Monroe warned that low-income shoppers were facing price increases because they could no longer buy those budget items.