Tesco and Aldi price match controversy – ‘shoppers getting less for their money’

Tesco logo on a shopping trolley
-Credit: (Image: Getty)


Dozens of Tesco products price-matched to Aldi - such as chicken nuggets, cottage pie and blackcurrant squash - are not what they seem, according to an investigation by BBC Panorama. For example, a chicken nugget pack offered by Tesco contained only 39 percent chicken versus 60 percent in the Aldi one it was price-matched to.

BBC researchers found that of 122 Tesco some 38 - nearly a third - had at least five percentage points less of the main ingredient than the Aldi products they had been matched to. Products containing lower levels of key ingredients, such as meat, are typically much cheaper to produce. As a result, a number of supermarkets and manufacturers have been cutting these amounts in popular products, such as ready meals and pies.

Tesco defended its price-match scheme, telling the BBC that it constantly reviews the quality of its products and has clear processes in place to ensure its price-match products are comparable to Aldi. Britain’s biggest supermarket also claimed that a higher proportion of any one ingredient does not necessarily mean it is better quality.

Consumer expert Kate Hardcastle told Panorama that its findings are an example of “value engineering” which involves changing quantities of ingredients to reduce the price. Sainsbury’s, Morrisons and ASDA offer similar ranges, but Panorama found no clear evidence of a pattern of consistent differences in the proportions of main ingredients in their goods compared with the Aldi versions.

Tesco matches Aldi’s prices on about 700 items out of its 30,000 product lines. They are usually low-priced everyday goods. Ingredients listed on 122 Tesco products price-matched to Aldi were analysed by Panorama in August.

For example, 450g packets of Tesco Hearty Food Co and Aldi Roosters chicken nuggets showing they both cost £1.55, however the Tesco product has 39 percent chicken compared with Aldi’s 60 percent. Tesco chicken kievs, which are part of the supermarket's Hearty Food Co range, had 44 percent chicken, compared with 57 percent in the Aldi equivalent. In the same range, Tesco cottage pie had 18 percent beef, whereas Aldi Inspired Cuisine Cottage Pie had 25 percent.

Aldi food market store
Tesco matches Aldi’s prices on about 700 items out of its 30,000 product lines -Credit:Getty

A can of Tesco Stockwell & Co Chilli Con Carne lists beef as making up 15 percent of its ingredients, while in Aldi Bramwells Chilli Con Carne the figure is 27 percent. A bottle of Tesco No Added Sugar DS Apple Blackcurrant Squash had 6 percent fruit juices from concentrate, while Aldi Sun Quench Double Strength Apple & Blackcurrant Squash had 20 percent.

A 450g Tesco Hearty Food Co cottage pie containing 18 percent beef was price-matched with a 400g Inspired Cuisine cottage pie containing 25 percent. Both cost £2.49 Kate Hardcastle said reducing the quantity of meat is a big money saver for a manufacturer or supermarket. She said: “It's only when you [customers] flip it over and look at that tiny, tiny, font size to see you're not getting the same deal.”

Not all of the Tesco price-match products analysed had less of the main ingredient than Aldi equivalents. Twelve of the 122 Tesco comparisons had at least five percentage points more than Aldi’s. These included: Hearty Food Co 10 Fish Fingers had 64 percent Alaska pollock, compared with Aldi’s Everyday Essentials Fish Fingers at 58 percent.

Tesco’s Eastmans Coleslaw had 57 percent cabbage versus 47 percent in Aldi’s The Deli Creamy Coleslaw. Also in the Eastman range, Reduced Fat Houmous had 62 percent of cooked chickpeas, whereas Aldi’s The Deli Reduced Fat Houmous had 55 percent.

Tesco said: “Since we launched our Aldi Price Match four years ago it has proved very popular with customers.” It added that all of its products carry information about ingredients so customers can make informed choices.

* Watch Panorama now on BBC iPlayer or on BBC One on Monday, September 23, at 8pm.