Coles leapfrogs Woolworths with price drops: 'Key staples'

Coles has reduced the price of a dozen popular supermarket items. The supermarket giant said the move will help Aussies struggling with the cost of living stretch their grocery budgets further.

Every day staples in the Coles Simply range will be cheaper from Tuesday, including common grocery list items like meats, bread rolls and soap. The price drops are not permanent and will go back in 12 weeks.

Beef lasagne will go to $2.80 from $3.65, BBQ sausages will drop from $5.40 to $4.80, $9.50 beef burgers will be slashed by a dollar and crumbed chicken burgers reduced from $13 to $12.

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Hot dog rolls ($2.50 from $2.75) and hamburger rolls ($2.50 from $2.75), along with tomato pasta sauce ($1.80 down from $2), sandwich slices ($4.60 down from $4.75) and bath soaps ($4.30 down from $4.50) have also had their prices reduced.

Coles said the move meant customers would see savings of up to 23 per cent on the core items.

They join seven other products that were already reduced last week, including foil, cling wrap and tea bags.

Woolworths told Yahoo Finance it had dropped prices on more than 450 winter essentials back in May, with the lower pricing available until August 27. It said customers could save an average of 20 per cent with winter savings.

In the past, the two supermarkets have leapt in when the other has announced price drops on certain items and matched their offerings. This time, however, Woolworths has not yet announced any further price changes for customers meaning Coles is offering some cheaper comparable items.

IGA also announced it would be dropping the price of more than 3,000 essential food items and lock the cost for the next three months. This includes lower prices on pantry staples and cleaning supplies, along with things like pet food.

The grocery chain also matches the lowest regular price of hundreds of everyday items with comparable products at Coles and Woolies every week.

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How do the price drops compare?

Here’s how some of those reduced Coles items stack up against comparable Woolies items:

Beef lasagne - Coles $2.80 (375g), Woolworths $3 (400g)

BBQ sausages - Coles $4.80 (560g), Woolworths $6.50 (600g)

Burger patties frozen - Coles $8.50, Woolworths $8.80

Hot dog rolls 6 pack - Coles $2.50, Woolworths $2.85

Hamburger rolls 6 pack - Coles $2.50, Woolworths $2.85

Coles chief commercial officer Anna Croft said the supermarket was “proud” to help Aussie families find a bit of savings in their weekly grocery shop.

“We know it’s a tough time for a lot of households, so being able to lower the prices on key staples like Coles Simply Beef Lasagne, Coles Simply Thin BBQ Sausages and the Coles Simply Classic Tomato Pasta Sauce, will make a difference to our customers,” she said.

When announcing the previous price drops, Woolworths Supermarkets chief commercial officer Paul Harker said the supermarket understood the “pressures our customers are under”.

Dropped prices included meats like corned beef silverside ($8 from $10 per kilo), beef chuck steak ($15 from $17.50 per kilo), whole chickens ($4.50 from $5.50 per kilo) and pork belly roasts ($16 from $19 per kilo).

Other winter essentials like soup and oats, along with home and pantry essentials like tea, cold and flu and lozenges were also reduced.

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