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# Woolworths raised prices on four 'frozen' staples within days
- URL: https://www.promptthemarket.com/woolworths-raised-prices-on-four-frozen-staples-within-days/
- Published: 2026-09-10T04:09:00.000Z
- Updated: 2026-09-24T15:11:52.000Z
- Description: On 30 April 2026, Woolworths Group CEO Amanda Bardwell made a straightforward commitment.
- Author: Editor News
- Tags: Brands, Marketing, #author-xaviery-malinao, #by Xaviery Malinao

By **Xaviery Malinao** · 2026-09-11

TLDR

Woolworths launched a three-month Price Freeze on 300 staples on 1 May 2026, then raised prices on at least four of those products within days. Price data shows rises of between 17 and 67 per cent on the affected lines, with two products later reverting.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

01RSPCA chicken breast fillets rose 33 per cent, from $9/kg to $12/kg, within five days of the Price Freeze starting.

02Four products in the promotion recorded price increases; two later reverted to their original prices.

03Woolworths ranked fourth on Roy Morgan's most-distrusted brands list in the June 2026 quarterly survey.

04From 1 July 2026, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) made excessive grocery pricing by very large supermarket retailers illegal.

05CHOICE says consumers lack the transparency to verify what a standard shelf price is.

## What the freeze promised

On 30 April 2026, Woolworths Group CEO Amanda Bardwell made a straightforward commitment. Bardwell promised that the shelf price visible that day was the most shoppers would pay across 300 staples for three months, and that Woolworths would invest to absorb any extra costs agreed with suppliers on those products.\[1\]

The Price Freeze covered 300 popular own-brand and exclusive products from 1 May 2026\. The list included eggs, pasta, beef sausages, nappies and, explicitly, chicken breast fillets.\[1\]

ACCC accuses Coles and Woolworths of misleading customers over promotional prices

## What the price data shows

Analysis by comparison tool CW Scanner tells a different story for at least four of those products. RSPCA-approved chicken breast fillets in 350 g deli portions climbed from $9/kg on 29 April 2026 to $12/kg on 5 May 2026, a 33 per cent rise in five days.\[2\] Bardwell had named the chicken fillet herself in the launch-day press release.

The other three products recorded the following movements:

__Price movements on frozen staples during the Woolworths Price Freeze. Source: CW Scanner analysis__
| Product                            | Before                | After          | Rise | Reverted     |
| ---------------------------------- | --------------------- | -------------- | ---- | ------------ |
| RSPCA chicken breast fillets 350 g | $9/kg (29 Apr)        | $12/kg (5 May) | 33%  | No           |
| Washed potatoes 2 kg               | $6 (29 Apr)           | $8 (6 May)     | 33%  | No           |
| Mexican Style 3 Bean Mix 420 g     | $0.60 (before 17 Jun) | $1.00 (17 Jun) | 67%  | Yes (17 Aug) |
| 12-pack fresh cinnamon donuts      | $3 (before 6 May)     | $3.50 (6 May)  | 17%  | Yes (18 Aug) |

Woolworths washed potatoes in 2 kg bags moved from $6 on 29 April to $8 on 6 May, the same week the freeze officially began.\[2\] The 420 g can of Mexican Style 3 Bean Mix rose 67 per cent, from $0.60 to $1.00, on 17 June 2026, before dropping back to $0.60 on 17 August 2026.\[2\] The 12-pack of cinnamon donuts went from $3 to $3.50 on 6 May 2026 and returned to $3 on 18 August 2026.\[2\]

## Woolworths' defence

The company's position, delivered through a spokesperson, is that it kept its word. Woolworths said the Price Freeze gave customers the certainty that they would not pay more than the shelf price on 300 popular products for three months, and that the company delivered on that commitment.\[2\]

That defence rests on the wording of the original promise: the pledge was that shoppers would not pay more than "the shelf price you see on these items today." Bardwell's statement referred to the price on 30 April 2026, the day of the announcement. For at least two products, the shelf price moved within seven days of that commitment.\[1\]

Bea Sherwood, senior campaigns and policy adviser at consumer advocacy group CHOICE, framed the structural problem plainly. Sherwood said prices have changed significantly over recent years with continuous increases, making it unrealistic for consumers to track what a regular shelf price is. She said that when Woolworths or Coles claim something is a standard price, consumers lack the transparency to understand how those companies arrived at that figure.\[2\]

## Trust and the regulator

Roy Morgan's June 2026 quarterly survey ranked Woolworths the fourth most distrusted brand in Australia.\[3\] That ranking landed before the CW Scanner price data entered public circulation, so the distrust pre-dates this specific episode but forms the backdrop against which the Price Freeze was meant to help.

The ACCC had already pursued Coles and Woolworths over misleading promotional pricing before the Price Freeze launched. From 1 July 2026, excessive pricing of grocery products by very large supermarket retailers became illegal under new ACCC rules.\[4\] The price movements documented by CW Scanner occurred before that date, so the ACCC's new power did not apply to them directly, though the rule changes the stakes for any future promotion that produces similar results.

SOURCES & CITATIONS

1. [Woolworths freezes shelf prices on 300 household staples, Woolworths Group](https://www.woolworthsgroup.com.au/au/en/our-newsroom/media-releases/latest-news/2026/woolworths-freezes-shelf-prices-on-300-household-staples.html?ref=promptthemarket.com)
2. [CW Scanner price analysis, Woolworths Price Freeze products](https://www.theguardian.com/business/2026/sep/11/woolworths-hike-family-staples-during-price-freeze-promotion?ref=promptthemarket.com)
3. [Roy Morgan Risk Monitor Quarterly Update June 2026](https://www.roymorgan.com/findings/10327-risk-monitor-quartely-update-june-2026?ref=promptthemarket.com)
4. [ACCC, Setting prices (excessive pricing rule effective 1 July 2026)](https://www.accc.gov.au/consumers/pricing/setting-prices?ref=promptthemarket.com)

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Which products rose in price during the Woolworths Price Freeze?

CW Scanner analysis identified four products: RSPCA chicken breast fillets (up 33 per cent), Woolworths washed potatoes 2 kg (up 33 per cent), Mexican Style 3 Bean Mix 420 g (up 67 per cent) and 12-pack fresh cinnamon donuts (up 17 per cent). The bean mix and donuts later reverted to their original prices.

What did Woolworths promise with the Price Freeze?

On 30 April 2026, CEO Amanda Bardwell promised that the shelf price visible that day was the most shoppers would pay across 300 staples for three months. Woolworths said it delivered on that commitment.

Is Woolworths breaking any law over these price rises?

The ACCC made excessive grocery pricing by very large supermarket retailers illegal from 1 July 2026\. The documented price movements occurred before that date. The ACCC had separately pursued Coles and Woolworths previously over misleading promotional pricing.

[Xaviery Malinao](https://www.promptthemarket.com/xaviery-malinao/)

Xaviery Malinao writes for Prompt the Market on how brands and agencies are adapting to answer engines, drawing on Bushnote's work with clients across search, AI search and content.