Will other supermarkets offer £1 soup and hot drinks like Asda?
Asda has launched a £1 “winter warmer” meal deal to help the over-60s through the cost-of-living crisis.
The deal, which includes soup, a roll and unlimited tea or coffee, will be available throughout November and December in any of the supermarket chain’s 205 cafes.
The supermarket announced the move after its latest Income Trackers showed that people aged 65-74 experienced a £163 drop in disposable income in August compared to last year.
Mohsin Issa, Asda’s co-owner, said: “We know that this winter is set to be incredibly hard for thousands of pensioners as they worry about how to keep themselves warm in the face of rising living costs and a fixed income.
“We’ve already been able to serve over half a million meals through our Kids Eat for £1 initiative in our cafes and we’re hoping our new offer of soup and hot drinks for over-60s will prove just as impactful for those who need it most."
Watch: Cost of living: Price of groceries could go up by £1.7bn
Here are what other supermarkets are doing to help people through the cost of living crisis:-
Tesco
Tesco has announced it will be bringing back its popular Kids Eat Free scheme at its cafes during the October half-term.
The offer, which will be available in 311 cafes across the UK, means adults only have to buy one item in a Tesco Cafe costing as little as 60p and show a valid Clubcard to qualify for one free child’s meal.
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It will run on weekdays between 17 and 28 October in England, Scotland and Northern Ireland and between 31 October and 4 November in Wales.
Tesco has also announced a price lock on more than 1,000 products in its Low Everyday Prices range, and supports families through a partnership with Fareshare and the Trussell Trust.
Waitrose
John Lewis & Partners, which owns Waitrose, said it isn't planning on launching anything similar to Asda's scheme, but is doing various things to try to ensure it offers value, including via discounts from its myWaitrose loyalty scheme, as well as recently launching 'Super Saver recipes' to give customers inspiration for meals costing under £2 a portion.
Morrisons
Morrisons has a permanent 'kids eat free' offer with the purchase of an adult meal of £4.99 or over.
The kids meal includes piece of fruit and Tropicana Kids Orange or Apple drink or bottle of water.
The child must be under 16 years of age and present at the time of purchase.
Sainsbury's
Yahoo News UK asked Sainsbury's if it is planning on launching a similar scheme, but had not received a reply by the time of publication.
Aldi
Aldi doesn't operate cafes, but is taking various steps to help customers with the cost of living, including donating 80,000 items from its Mamia range, including nappies and baby wipes, to charities and foodbanks that help new parents on low incomes.
It also partnered with Neighbourly to donate more than 700,000 meals during the summer holidays, as well as more than 100,000 books to help children across the UK.
Lidl
Lidl doesn't offer free meals, but is involved in various initiatives that it says are designed to fit with its aim of giving households access to good food at low prices.
The chain's Feed it Back Network, which it runs in partnership with Neighbourly, sees all of its stores across the country connected with local charities, food banks, community cafes and soup kitchens, so any surplus can be put to good use.
It also recently launched its ‘Good to Give’ trustmark, designed to diversify and increase food donations in Britain, as well as launching a £500,000 ‘Lidl Community Fund’ to support the charities that its stores support.
