Australian grocery bills surge past wages, sparking calls for a retail competition inquiry

In Australia, grocery prices have outpaced wage growth during the past year and a half, with Canstar reporting an 8.5% rise in a standard Woolworths basket from $213.89 in March 2025 to $232.02 in July 2026, while the Australian Bureau of Statistics logged only 3.3% wage growth. Retail academic Lisa Asher labels the trend "greedflation," citing the duopoly of Woolworths and Coles, rising farming, energy and logistics expenses, and the Iran war’s impact on fertilizer and fuel.

Consumers such as Chris Jackson and Roseanne Browning say weekly grocery bills have jumped from roughly $300 to over $400, leading many to bulk-buy, choose frozen items, or replace meat with lentils. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has begun tracking "excessively priced" products and gained authority to block supermarket expansions that could diminish competition. Growing pressure is mounting for a royal commission to investigate the dominance of major retailers, including Wesfarmers and Amazon, and to propose legislative changes.