Nestlé chief executive Paul Buckle has hinted that the price of some of its products on UK retail shelves may rise in the near-term as a result of the devaluation of the pound. Speaking after Nestlé released sales figures for the first nine months of its financial year, Buckle said pricing would be set by the management of its UK business.

However, as Nestlé UK imports commodities such as cocoa and coffee, prices may have to rise to offset the decline in sterling. Most commodities are priced in US dollars, which sterling has weakened against by over 19% since the Brexit vote.

Buckle also said milk prices have come from historical lows in the last 12 months but they were on an upward trend.

“Milk prices were at historical lows, but it’s not healthy to have extremely low commodity prices. It’s a very un-stabilising factor,” said Buckle. “[Having] low commodity prices is not good because it conditions the lives of so many people. There’s a false impression that this helps us. Well, at the end of the day, it doesn’t help.”

Marmitegate

Any price increases from Nestlé would follow the example set by Unilever last week when it demanded that retailers increase the price of its products by 10% on average to offset its rising raw material costs. A public row that became known as “marmitegate” erupted between Unilever and Tesco, leading Unilever to withdraw its products from Tesco stores.

A deal was struck between both sides within 24 hours after the row first began, although it is believed the compromise is closer to the 10% increase in price that Unilever wanted than the demands of Tesco for prices to stay static.