Now Co-op slaps £2 bar of Cadbury chocolate inside a security box - after Tesco introduced tags on shopping baskets amid fears the cost-of-living crisis is fuelling a surge in shoplifting
Shoppers have been left stunned after they spotted a £2 chocolate bar locked inside a security box in a Co-op supermarket as the cost-of-living crisis sparks fear of a surge in shoplifting.
The security-protected bar of Dairy Milk Wholenut was seen at a Co-op in Codsall in Staffordshire.
A customer who first observed the locked-up milk chocolate treat said they thought it was 'slightly mental' that the bar was kept in a box which 'must be removed at checkout.'
However Co-op isn't the only supermarket resorting to extreme measures to combat thieves - a Tesco branch in Theydon Bois, Essex, has slapped security tags on shopping baskets due to a rise in the number of people helping themselves to 'five-finger discounts' amid the cost-of-living crisis.
Shopper James Beach, 45, was surprised to see the security measure in place during a recent trip to the store.
The security-protected bar of Dairy Milk Wholenut was seen at a Co-op in Codsall in Staffordshire
A Tesco branch in Theydon Bois, Essex, has slapped security tags on shopping baskets
He said: 'I couldn't believe it when I saw they had stuck tags on shopping baskets - I mean, what are you going to do with one of them? Is there nothing these people won't nick?'
James added: 'I spoke to one of the staff and she said they'd had loads of thefts so they were tagging the baskets now to try and deter people.'
Another Tesco in Bristol started checking customers on CCTV before letting them into the store in a 'nightclub-style door policy'.
The branch in Southville has also moved their shopping baskets away from the doors to stop thieves piling them up with shopping and running out.
It leaves the automatic doors shut until customers are viewed on camera to see if they are suspected or well-known thieves.
Staff say the 'nightclub-style door policy' is in operation between 6am and 9am and in the late evenings when no security guards are on duty.
In an Aldi in south-east London customers were left dumbfounded when they spotted £5.35 tubs of Lurpak butter were now encased in a black net with a security tag attached.
A Bristol Tesco branch, pictured, has started checking people on CCTV before allowing them to enter
A shopper shared a video of the netted Lurpaks to TikTok after she saw them in an Aldi in Kidbrooke, southeast London
A shopper shared a video of the netted butter on Tik Tok with the caption: 'UK inflation going mad.'
It isn't just supermarkets which are taking measures to combat shoplifting. Greggs announced in March that staff were to start wearing body cameras in their busiest stores as a part of efforts to deter thieves from stealing sausage rolls and other pasties.
These measures comes after it was reported earlier in the month that convenience store thefts have soared to 5.6million from 1.1million in just one year.
Figures from the Association of Convenience Stores also revealed that there were 76,000 acts of violence in small shops last year, up from 41,000.
Meanwhile, the British Retail Consortium said thefts cost retailers £1.8billion in 2022-23, up from £953million the previous year.
A spokesperson for Co-op told MailOnline: 'Safety and security of our stores is always our key priority and security cases have been used for a number of years where there are local challenges, forming part of a wide range of preventative measures to deter and prevent retail crime.
'Products placed in security cases are typically higher value products targeted by criminals. It is not a Co-op or UK-wide policy to place this item in a security case, a decision has been taken locally.'
