A loaf of branded, white sliced bread costs about ￡1.20 at Tesco. The retailer’s own-label equivalent costs 70p, or 42 per cent less. It is not surprising that Tesco’s chief executive, Ken Murphy, recently flagged bread as one of the categories where customers are starting to trade down to cheaper alternatives.

That trend is already being felt by the companies that make own-label products — and they expect it to accelerate. “We are seeing an increase in our own-label volumes, especially in bread where the value for money gap is very clear,” said the managing director of one bakery products group.

“The increase in the energy price cap is likely to focus minds even more,” he added, noting that the soaring cost of energy in the UK meant this downturn was “moving at a far quicker pace” than previous ones and that “a lot of households will have to batten the hatches down”.