Waitrose in row with Asda over 'Just Essentials' budget range

Waitrose has sent a legal letter to Asda after its rival unveiled a similarly-named discount product range.

Asda announced its Just Essentials range on Monday, promising an expanded line of low-cost products in all its stores from May to help shoppers with the cost of living.

But Waitrose said the branding is too similar to its own Essential Waitrose range launched in 2009.

Asda said "essentials" is a "commonly-used term" for discount product ranges.

Asda's new value range will replace its current Smart Price range, which was criticised by food poverty campaigner and chef Jack Munroe for not being available in all Asda stores.

Waitrose, which is owned by the John Lewis Partnership, said it had written to Asda raising trademark concerns and was awaiting a response.

"We were surprised to hear that Asda is launching an essentials range as the Essential Waitrose brand has been in use since 2009 and has built up a strong reputation for value, quality and higher welfare standards in that time," said a Waitrose spokesman.

"As we've also protected the name as a trademark, we have raised this with Asda and are awaiting a response."

An Asda spokesperson said: "The word 'essentials' is a generic and commonly used term by retailers to describe their value product ranges."

Asda, which was bought by the billionaire Issa brothers and their backers TDR Capital in 2020, says the Just Essentials by Asda range will include 300 low-cost products.

At the moment its value Smart Price and Farm Stores ranges have 200 products.

Ms Munroe criticised the supermarket last month for taking value ranges off its shelves and raising prices at time when many household budgets are being squeezed.

Mohsin Issa, co-owner of Asda, said: "We understand that customers are increasingly worried about the cost of living and want help to keep their grocery bills in check, whilst still being able to buy healthy and nutritious food for their families.

"Our new Just Essentials range has been specifically designed with this in mind, combining our lowest prices with a much larger and more diverse range of great value products to meet all household needs."

The cost of living was rising before Russia's invasion of Ukraine, but the war there has pushed food, fuel and energy bills higher.

On Monday, budget supermarket chain Iceland noted that Russia and Ukraine make up 30% of global wheat exports, and Russia is a major oil exporter.

"Boycotts and disruption resulting from the war are already driving huge increases in global energy and commodity prices, affecting milling wheat, edible oils, animal feed, fertilisers, food processing, packaging and transport," managing director Richard Walker wrote in a blog post.

"Our suppliers of meat, poultry, eggs, dairy products and a range of other foods are not just warning us of massive inflationary pressures hurtling towards them: they are seriously worrying about whether they will be able to secure key ingredients at all, or have the diesel to transport them to depots and stores if they do."

The retailer said it will now reverse a decision to stop using palm oil in its own-brand products due to a shortage of sunflower oil caused by the war.

Ukraine and Russia account for 70% of the global supply of sunflower oil, but Mr Walker said the ingredient had "suddenly become totally unobtainable.