Marks & Spencer has faced backlash for its pricing strategy after customers discovered how much the retailer currently charges for two slices of bread.
Earlier this year, M&S was named the UK’s best supermarket by Which?, with survey respondents remarking positively on the quality of products and overall shopping experience.
With more than 1,000 stores across the nation, thousands of us are guilty of popping in weekly for a decadent sweet treat, while others buy a fridge-load on the regular.
If you’re someone who keeps up with new items released at M&S, then you may already be familiar with the controversial Spanish Traditional Plain Pan De Cristal.
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The product was launched in July and comes in a pack of two. It is guaranteed to have at least a week’s shelf life, according to the official Ocado listing.
Its £4 price tag, which boils down to a jaw-dropping £2 per slice of bread, has raised eyebrows, but it isn’t the only version of the item available to purchase.
Like its Catalonian sister, the Spanish Cheese & Tomato Pan De Crystal (£4) is ready-to-cook and is delivered in two portions.
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The latter comes topped with Spanish cheese slices, roasted garlic, and tomatoes.
According to the Telegraph, some stores are selling the product for as much as £4.50 a pop.
The outlet reported that Pan de Cristal costs 25 times more than a white loaf by weight.
This worked out as 9p per 100g for thick sliced bread versus £2.50 per 100g for Pan de Cristal, as per the publication.
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Both products were launched alongside other Spanish-inspired items, such as a Crushed Tomato Bread Topper and a Watermelon Gazpacho.
TikTok users have come out in droves to debate the price of the carbohydrate, with one typing: “Jesus Christ that’s expensive.”
“A tin of chopped tomatoes and a baguette is less than a pound. Am I tight?,” replied someone else.
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A third social media user commented: “M&S pricing now is just ridiculous.”
Others have defended the company’s pricing, with another TikTok fan typing: “It’s a premium product, you don’t have to buy it. You could also just buy normal bread for much cheaper.”
“It’s amazing worth every penny,” a second added while a third penned: "NEW PICKY BITS OF DREAMS."
This isn’t the first time that a M&S food item’s price has come under fire, with shoppers calling out the ‘ludicrous’ cost of a Beef Wellington in October.
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Chris Young, from the Real Bread Campaign, told the Telegraph that M&S should justify the price ‘given the economies of the enormous scale at which even supposedly ‘artisan’ supermarket loaves are manufactured’.
He claimed the price point was in the ‘ballpark that small independents need to charge in order to remain financially viable’.
Young questioned: “Can the same be said of a supermarket?”
A spokesperson for M&S told the site that the Pan de Cristal range was designed to be enjoyed as ‘a starter or as part of a tapas-style meal’, explaining that products had proven very popular, with 75,000 packs being sold since launch and more than 5,000 bought per week in summer.
The spokesman said: “We know our customers want different products for different occasions from a weekday breakfast with the family to serving friends restaurant-quality tapas at home using the best authentic Spanish products.
“In fact, we know that more people are choosing to eat something different or special at home instead of going out. Our tapas-style Spanish Pan de Cristal is made with restaurant-quality ingredients including Spanish-made bread from the Catalan region and extra virgin olive oil.”
FOODbible has contacted M&S for further comment.
Topics: UK Food, Diet, Social Media, TikTok
Ella Scott