Mumbai, December 1: Keeping up with the rising cost of living is not easy. It often brings even the strongest to the knees. As the UK records the highest inflations in 41 years, people in Cardiff and other areas are now resorting to eating pet food and heating up meals using candles or radiators as a result of the cost of living crisis. As the UK reports record inflation with the cost of food and non-alcoholic drinks soaring by 16.4 percent, rising energy bills, cost of fuel, etc, the people are forced to resort to such extreme measures.

Mark Steed, a community food project head in Trowbridge, Cardiff, told BBC that he was shocked by the fact that we have people who are eating pet food, and people who are trying to heat their food on a candle or a radiator. "These are shocking kind of stories that are actually the truth, we know from trusted people that have ended up sharing this in tears with us – it shouldn’t happen, Steed added. University students are also reportedly indulging in pet food to counter rising inflations. A student took to Reddit to share his meal routine. He said he has been eating dog food for breakfast, dinner, and tea because he has already run out of money. UK Inflation Rises to 41-Year High at 11.1% in October 2022.

Meanwhile, cheap pet food is made with filler ingredients that are barely digestible and contains no nutrients. The inexpensive pet food products generally contain ground-up animal parts like chicken beaks, bones, and feathers, which may turn out to be harmful to human health. On the other hand, expensive pet food which is made with quality ingredients, would not have these issues in them, but then that kind of defeats the purpose of saving money. RBI Fails To Meet Inflation Mandate; CPI Surges to 7.41% in September 2022.

Amid this, inflation in the UK does not seem to take a break. Experts believe that by the end of the year, the average family will have spent £4,960 in the supermarket in 2022 - £380 more than in 2021, a report said. As inflation reels the UK, several companies expect to raise prices by 5.7 percent in the coming 12 months.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Dec 01, 2022 11:20 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).