The cost of a traditional Christmas dinner has soared by a third in the past five years, according to new analysis from Quenelles, the UK’s leading food benchmarking service.
With the festive season fast approaching – and catering teams across the country preparing their Christmas menus – Quenelles has crunched the numbers to reveal just how much the cost of key Christmas favourites has changed since 2020.
Mince pies have seen the sharpest rise, up 94% in price over the five-year period, followed by turkey breast roll (+83%), potatoes (+72%), pigs in blankets (+61%) and cranberry sauce (+41%).
However, not all festive staples have followed the same upward trend. Brussels sprouts have increased by just 8%, while Christmas puddings are up by a modest 15%, suggesting that not every item on the festive plate has felt the full brunt of inflation.
Paul Wright, Managing Director at Quenelles, commented: “It’s been a turbulent five years for food pricing – from the pandemic to the cost-of-living crisis, inflation has created real challenges for caterers managing budgets. While some increases were expected, it’s eye-opening to see just how much more certain Christmas staples are now costing.
“Of course, the percentage increases vary depending what pack formats you look at – but the figures are based on the more popular pack sizes we typically see contract caterers and in-house catering teams purchasing, providing a realistic reflection of what’s happening on the ground.”
The findings come from Quenelles’ daily benchmarking of food prices, which enables contract caterers and in-house catering teams to understand how competitive their purchasing prices are and identify opportunities for smarter procurement.
With over £1.5 billion worth of benchmarked data, Quenelles boasts the UK’s most comprehensive food benchmarking database – covering more than 470,000 coded product lines, 3,100 named suppliers, and 51,000+ benchmarked products.
Earlier this year, the company reported revenue growth of 20% year-on-year, with both an increase in new client numbers and significant organic growth. Quenelles also became an accredited Living Wage Employer earlier this year, meaning every team member earns a wage that meets the real cost of living, not just the government minimum.
For further information please visit www.quenelles.co.uk
