How much fonio does your family get through in a week and how much will the reduction in price help you?

[noblegiraffe]

The govt have released a list of 125 "everyday essentials" that they plan to cut tax on to help families with the cost of living.

It's a bit of a weird list. Beans, biscuits and chocolate yes, a bit more baffled by the fresh figs, gherkins and plantains. And I had to google fonio.

Aubergines
Avocados
Baked beans
Bananas (fresh and dried)
Biscuits
Boiled sweets
Bread
Buckwheat
Candied fruit
Chewing gum
Chocolate (bulk and retail)
Chocolate bars
Chocolate drink preparations
Chocolate spreads
Chocolate with fruit, nuts or cereal
Citrus fruits (various)
Cocoa paste
Cocoa powder
Couscous
Crispbread
Crisps
Dried apples
Dried apricots
Dried figs
Dried papaya
Dried peaches/nectarines
Dried pears
Fonio
Fresh figs
Frozen fruits
Garlic
Gherkins
Gingerbread
Green tea
Jams and marmalades
Limes
Liquorice products
Margarine
Marzipan and pastes
Mixed dried fruit
Mixed fats and oils
Mixed fruit and nuts
Mixed nuts
Mixed preserved fruit and nuts
Non-alcoholic beverages
Olive oil (extra virgin)
Olive oil (other)
Olive oil (virgin)
Olives (for oil production)
Olives (fresh/chilled)
Olives (frozen)
Other fresh fruits
Other peppers (capsicum/pimenta)
Pickled peppers
Pizzas and quiches
Plant-based drinks
Plantains (fresh and dried)
Prepared vegetables
Preserved beans
Preserved citrus fruits
Preserved tropical fruit
Preserved vegetables
Processed potatoes
Quinoa
Rusks
Soups and broths
Sugar confectionery
Sugar tablets
Sweet peppers
Throat pastilles
Toasted bread products
Toffees and caramels
Tomato ketchup
Tomato sauces
Vegetable oils
Waffles and wafers

Not true. Rachel Reeves has said that it’s conditional on the supermarkets passing on the price reduction to consumers ‘In full’ and the supermarkets aren’t allowed to profit.

Ah ..ok....thank you ☺️

Because pasta generally comes from EU countries, so no tariff in the first place. Whereas couscous comes from countries such as Morocco that we don't have a free trade agreement with (I mean, we did, but then we left the EU).

I'm guessing you aren't a food manufacturer who bulk buys frozen olives then. This is a list of good that previously had tariffs on if they were imported from a country that we don't have an FTA in place with, that will now be zero tariff rated.

We have an FTA in place with the EU. No tariffs on most goods of wholly EU manufacture. Including Italian-made pasta.

These are the countries the UK has a free trade agreement with
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Free_trade_agreements_of_the_United_Kingdom

No vodka or wine.

Can’t reduce costs on these because British Farmers (!!). Obviously, this list is nothing grown in the UK because no one British wants to make less money. They’d get their tractors out again.

I bought 10 things on that list in my shop this week. I won't be planning a holiday on the savings I'd make

38 things on the list that we regularly buy.

We (obviously) don’t pay import duties on food grown in the UK. So there is no tax to take off.

No, I’m not. But as I mostly cook from scratch I’m pretty knowledgeable about ingredients to make things. I’d actually like to try Fonio now I’ve seen it but unfortunately it wasnt available in Asda. I’m curious what sorts of items manufacturers buy fonio for now.

I am happy if olive oil will be cheaper but I’m not convinced any savings will be passed onto customers as I don’t know how this will be at all transparent or monitored. Won’t it just be the importers and manufacturers who will buy them for less and will they be forced somehow to reduce by equivalent %?

I’m in north Wales, we have loads here!

If this about import tarrifs, can't I just have chewing gum from Wrigleys in Plymouth? I don't think we have import tarrifs from Devon to Cornwall. 🤔🤷‍♀️😁

Just realised I have only ever eaten about ten of those products in my entire life.

I can’t see how importers, manufacturers and retailers would be required to pass on savings from duty being reduced. It’s up to them. They will make a commercial decision as to what maximises their profits: keep the savings, or pass them on in the hope that it increases their sales and makes them more money.

But the opening post refers to the scheme being designed to help with COL so surely the idea is to make the end product cheaper? I don’t get it otherwise

”The govt have released a list of 125 "everyday essentials" that they plan to cut tax on to help families with the cost of living.”

Well yes, the government can cut the duties but the rest is up to retailers. What more can they do?

That was my point really. How will they know that the scheme achieves what it is intended to. What’s the point otherwise.

The point is to reduce taxes simple as that.

Those are not VATable items

I thought most people would have fix?
I got a 15 month fix in May so nothing changing here. Can someone people not do that?

But they stock to suit their demographic - our supermarket does sell it because we've got a large community of African heritage in its catchment area. Ditto plantain.

I have never in my life seen or heard of frozen olives. Have I been living a sheltered life or am I ignorant of a culture that has a bag of frozen olives on hand at all times in case… someone wants their martini extra cold? (Actually that’s not a bad idea, shame I don’t drink martinis!)

Such an odd list. And while I love chocolate is that really an essential compared to rice/pasta/potatoes/bread/veggies/fruit?!

Question is do we benefit or does the supermarket?