According to market research organisation Gfk NOP, 42% of shoppers are opting to purchase supermarket label items than branded items. Additionally, 28% of those polled are now buying their groceries at discount stores. TNS Worldpanel figures concur that record spending levels are now being witnessed in UK discount supermarkets.

Donna Culverwell of GfK NOP's Consumer Confidence team stated that people are growingly unsure about their personal finance prospects for the coming 12 months, and are therefore being less frivolous with their spending.

The Food Marketing Institute, a US-based industry trade group, found this year that the number of shoppers who say they are buying more store-brand items has been steadily rising, now up to some 60%. In the US the nation's biggest grocery-sellers, Wal-Mart, Kroger, Supervalu Inc. and Safeway Inc., all report that sales of their own brands are jumping. Wal-Mart says sales of some private-label categories are up 40% this year.

Even upper-income shoppers are more willing to buy store brands, which have traditionally been seen as appealing most to people on limited budgets. This shift is also due in part to chains offering more store-brand products of better quality.

Like other chains, Kroger now uses a tiered approach, offering a sharply discounted "Value" brand, its namesake store brands, and what it calls "premium" brands such as Private Selection. Kroger says it puts that label only on products that meet or exceed the leading national brand in quality. Private Selection sales are projected to hit $1 billion this year.