ONE of the world's largest consumer goods manufacturers has been accused of 'exploiting consumers' amid the falling value of the pound after a pricing row with Tesco left the supermarket low on household items such as Marmite, Flora and Persil.

Unilever is believed to have demanded a 10% price rise due to the falling value of sterling, halting deliveries to Tesco when it refused.

The stand-off has left the supermarket facing a shortage of brands such as Surf washing powder, Comfort fabric conditioner, Hellmann's mayonnaise, Pot Noodle and Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream.

The move is understood to have hit online sales rather than products in store.

Shoppers trying to buy items from Tesco's website on Wednesday were met with the message "Sorry, this product is currently not available".

It is thought a number of supermarkets are embroiled in the row with Unilever, which earlier this year posted profits of around £2 billion for the first half of 2016.

Since the EU referendum on June 23, the pound has lost nearly 18% of its value against the dollar.

Brands affected includes:

Food and drink

  • Bertolli
  • Flora
  • Hellmann’s
  • Knorr
  • Lipton
  • Lyons
  • Magnum
  • Ben & Jerry’s
  • Carte D’Or
  • Cornetto
  • I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter
  • Maille
  • Marmite
  • Solero
  • Stork
  • Vienetta
  • Wall’s
  • Bovril
  • Colman’s
  • Elmlea
  • Pot Noodle
  • Lyons
  • PG Tips

Household

  • Comfort
  • Domestos
  • Persil
  • Surf
  • Cif

Cosmetics

  • Dove
  • Lynx
  • Sure
  • Brut
  • Tresemme
  • Timotei
  • VO5
  • Impulse
  • Pond’s
  • Vaseline
  • Impulse
  • Radox
  • Simple
  • St Ives

Chief executive Paul Polman warned in June that a vote to leave the EU's single market would increase prices for consumers.

He said that a vote to Leave would mean hikes in import duties on items such as dairy products, leading to price rises that would affect consumers.

But MPs condemned Unilever, saying the company was using Brexit as an excuse to exploit consumers, and warned it may be damaging its brand.

Conservative MP Sir Gerald Howarth said it will be very damaging to the firm's reputation "if they seek to use the fall in the pound to exploit the consumer".

Shares in both companies took a hit as a result of the spat. Tesco shares were down 1.96% and Unilever was down 2.46% in morning trading.

Unilever, which has a factory in Warrington, has told the Warrington Guardian they do not want to comment.