Price of Marmite and Ben and Jerry's soars by more than 10 per cent as inflation bites

Unilever have hiked up prices on some of the UK's biggest brands by an eye-watering 11.2% as the cost of the food shop continues to rise.

The British multinational, manufacturer of Marmite, Hellmann's and Ben and Jerry's, reported a sharp increase in product prices over the last twelve months on Tuesday (July 26).

An address to shareholders also revealed that the sales of some big-name brands. were being hit as customers in Britain and across Europe were now switching to own brand products at the supermarket to keep their spend down.

Blaming soaring fuel and food prices for forcing their costs up, Unilever chief executive Alan Jope said that the next year would be another testing period for the food and toiletries giant, warning: “We are entering into a period of slower economic growth.

The owner of Pot Noodle says many families are switching to supermarket own brands, which is hurting their sales (Getty / Golden Wonder)

"Whether it tips into full-blown recession remains to be seen . . . our ability to navigate these conditions is almost entirely dependent on the strength of our brands.”

The company, who also own Pot Noodle, Lynx deodrants and Wall's ice cream, is said to be paying an extra £4billion in costs compared to this time last year.

The Russia-Ukraine war is thought to be one of the major causes for this uptick in expenditure, with raw materials such as wheat, sunflower oil and pulp used in packaging now reaching record highs.

But despite this the multinational is confident of another year of profits in the many billions of pounds, and now expects to beat its previous forecast of 4.5% in full-year sales growth to 6.5% in light of the price hikes.

Unilever has had some PR issues with its brands in recent times, and came into conflict with the board of Ben & Jerry's earlier this month over its political stance.

Ben & Jerry's continues to rake in money for the multinational — but staff were warned by Unilever this month over their politics (Bloomberg via Getty Images)

The ice cream maker attempted to sue its parent company over its decision to sell rights to the name to a licensee in Israel, as this would meant it would be sold in the occupied West Bank.

While part of the larger company, a section of the acquisition deal signed by Ben & Jerry's in 2000 protected their ability to comment on issues of social importance without interference.

Unilever have however argued that matters of international distribution fall outside of this agreement.

Commenting on the furore yesterday, Mr Jope said: "There is plenty for Ben & Jerry’s to get their teeth into on their social justice mission without straying into geopolitics and I’m sure the brand will continue to enjoy a very bright future doing just that."