Sainsbury's threatens to prosecute shoppers caught swapping premium eggs into cheaper boxes

The supermarket chain has installed notices in stores declaring that all shoplifters face prosecution, with CCTV evidence passed directly to police.

Retail analyst Steve Dresser shared an image on social media showing the warnings positioned beneath Burford Brown eggs, a premium variety priced at £3.20 for six, roughly 75 per cent more than the £1.80 charged for standard own-brand alternatives.

The sign read: "Removing eggs from the packet is regarded as theft. Footage of shoplifting will be passed to the police. We prosecute all shoplifters."

The crackdown follows numerous complaints from shoppers who discovered upon arriving home that their premium egg boxes contained cheaper alternatives.

Earlier this year, social media videos showed customers describing how they had been victims of this form of theft.

Some reported that "large" eggs had been replaced with "medium" ones without their knowledge.

Anita Wong, a customer who raised concerns about the practice in February, told the Telegraph that shop staff had told her that such swaps were "not uncommon."

Egg prices have climbed significantly over recent years.

A dozen eggs now costs £3.31, up from £2.48 at the start of 2022, according to the Office for National Statistics data.

A Sainsbury’s spokesman said: "We have a range of security measures in our stores and if our managers notice specific items are becoming a target for theft, they may take additional measures in response.”

The sector has faced mounting cost pressures during this period.

However, major retailers have indicated that the cost of living for shoppers is not the primary factor behind the increase in theft levels.

Instead, supermarkets point to organised criminal gangs who target stores on a regular basis as the main culprits.

Other supermarkets are also understood to be exploring approaches to combat retail crime.

Asda has reportedly been exploring dispensing items such as razors and perfume through vending machines to prevent theft.

Meanwhile, retail executives have called for greater police support.

It comes as shoplifting across England and Wales has risen by 133 per cent in just five years as less than one in five people have been charged.

The data, compiled by the House of Commons Library and examined by the Liberal Democrats, shows shoplifting incidents rose from 228,128 in 2020-21 to 530,457 in 2024-25.

Just 19.83 per cent of recorded offences in 2024-25 resulted in suspects being charged, with significant disparities emerging between the 43 police forces operating across England and Wales.

London's Metropolitan Police recorded the worst performance of any force, with fewer than seven per cent of shoplifting cases resulting in charges during 2024-25.

This represents a decline from 8.64 per cent five years earlier, when the capital's force dealt with 31,008 reported thefts.

That figure has since trebled to 93,626 offences.

Liberal Democrat Home Affairs spokesman Max Wilkinson told GB News: "We're really concerned about this because there does seem to have been a surge."

Senior figures at Marks & Spencer have written directly to London Mayor Sir Sadiq Khan and Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood, accusing thieves of becoming "more brazen, more organised and more aggressive" in their attacks on its stores.

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