Fizz goes out of official check on inflation

Canned fizzy drinks have given way to bottled mineral water in the goods basket used to measure inflation, says the Office for National Statistics.

By The Newsroom

Published 16th Mar 2010, 10:06 BST

Updated 16th Mar 2010, 10:07 BST

The move reflects higher spending on smaller bottles of mineral water in the "on-the-go" drinks market in recent years.

The latest snapshot of the nation's spending habits also showed hair straighteners replacing hairdryers and lipstick giving way to lip gloss.

Cereal bars are included for the first time, while pitta bread has been replaced by garlic bread.

Other new items in the basket include frozen fish in breadcrumbs, allergy tablets, liquid soap and Blu-ray disc players, which follows the introduction of Blu-ray discs a year ago.

Among this year's discarded items are disposable cameras.

The ONS collects about 180,000 prices every month for a basket of about 650 goods and services – the most comprehensive survey of its kind in the UK.

Office for National Statistics