Today's figures tally with data released earlier this week from the British Retail Consortium (BRC), which said that food prices had risen by 10 per cent in the year to August, and singled out the soaring cost of pork products.

The price of eight rashers of bacon at Tesco has risen from £1.25 last year to £2.38, according to mysupermarket.com, the price comparison site.

Asda is charging 30 per cent more for 100g of medium pork chops at £5.79, while 175g of smoked ham has risen by 58p in a year to £2.16.

Times Online reports that pork products have risen substantially because the grain used to feed pigs has become more expensive while farmers have struggled with the increasing cost of fuel.