Fury over Typhoo tea plans to raise cost of cuppa as firm is latest to blame Brexit for rising costs
MP Peter Bone has said the announcement that the price of a cup of Typhoo tea will raise by 50 per cent because of Brexit is an 'excuse to make money'
AN MP has accused Typhoo tea of using Brexit as an 'excuse to make money' after the company revealed there would be a 50 per cent price hike.
Somnath Saha, who is the company boss of Typhoo, has claimed the cost of importing an 80kg bag of the tea has increased from £100 to £150 since the start of this year which will reflect in the cost of their tea.
Peter Bone, a Tory MP for Wellingborough, told the Daily Mail: "Despite all the predictions, Brexit has been good for the economy: growth is strong, exports are cheaper and people are investing in this country.
"People like to use excuses to put their prices up and there's plenty of that around at the moment.
"Sounds like an excuse to make more money to me."
Mr Saha blames the recent fall in the pound which has also seen other products jacked up in price including Apple's Macbook Air and English breakfast favourite, Marmite.
Saha says it's costing the business, which employs 300 people in the UK and produces 125 million tea bags a week at its Wigan factory, £250,000 a month, reports .
He said: "We are really suffering. It’s come to a point where it’s not sustainable. We cannot accept this loss any more.
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"This is a really serious situation for us. Nobody wants to do this, but ultimately some of the costs will go to the shoppers.
"There is no other option. It’s one of the favourite drinks of this country. It’s very unfortunate. It’s nobody’s fault – it’s due to economic conditions."
The boss claims that if the fall in Sterling continued as it has been since the European referendum, his business would lose almost all of its £3 million annual profit, saying there has been "too much volatility" since Brexit on June 23.
Earlier this year, TV chef Nigella Lawson became an "ambassador" for Typhoo - appearing in an advert which showed her on a sofa with a cuppa and a slice of chocolate cake.
The tea brand's warning comes as pressure mounts on Prime Minister Theresa May to reveal whether she gave any secret assurances to car maker Nissan over plans to expand production at its factory in Sunderland to stop the firm pulling out of the UK.
Labour MP Chuka Umunna wrote to the Prime Minister yesterday demanding to know if she had promised to pay the manufacturer – and whether similar offers had been made to other foreign investors.
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