Shellfish Sales Soaring As Credit Crunch Bites

Waitrose today revealed that its sales of shellfish are up 31 per cent and seafood generally by 25 per cent on last year.

The boom is seen as part of a trend towards so called "scratch cooking" - preparing meals from raw ingredients at home rather than just heating up a ready meal - that has accelerated as the crunch has bitten into household budgets.

All sales at Waitrose supermarkets were up three per cent last week. "Restaurant-style" starters and appetisers such as mackerel smoked with honey and soy or salmon smoked with mustard and honey have also been selling well.

A Waitrose spokesman said: "Seafood and shellfish are definitely proving to be very, very popular this summer. We are seeing strong sales of things like prawns, smoked salmon, roes and especially dressed crab."

In another sign that shoppers are seeking every opportunity to trim their budgets, supermarkets have seen a boom in sales of such foods as croissants and muffins which they would last year have picked up at Starbucks or Caff Nero on the way into work.

Sainsbury's said sales of insulated coffee mugs have more than doubled over the past year and sales of muffins are up 170 per cent in the past three months.

A Sainsbury's spokeswoman said: "Our customers are proving to be real savvy shoppers as the credit crunch bites. They are tailoring their purchasing habits to suit their own needs and budgets - enjoying a home-made morning just as much as they loved their caf rituals." The average price of a large latte in a high-street caf is 2.05.

Gemma Harrison, tea and coffee buyer at Whittard of Chelsea, said: "As a result of shopper demand, Whittard has had to place a bulk order for travel coffee mugs.

"We have seen this particularly in our shops in the commuter banker belt areas of central London, StAlbans, Richmond, Windsor and Guildford where a morning caffeine boost is essential for those catching early trains into the City.