The surge in prices had led consumers to go to the shops more often, but overall householders are buying fewer packs as a way to cope with higher costs.
Grocery inflation rose to 6.82pc, up from 6.25pc over the 12 weeks to near the end of January.
Grocery sales in Ireland rose by 5pc in the four weeks to 25 January. Shoppers spent more than €1.2bn on groceries over the period.
But they bought 2pc fewer packs year on year, highlighting continued caution among Irish consumers as grocery inflation rose, the supermarket analysts said.
Business development director at Worldpanel Emer Healy said: “January is typically the time when shoppers reset their household budgets, and this year was no different.
“While grocery sales continued to grow, rising inflation meant that value remained front of mind for consumers.”
She said the latest group study carried out by her firm revealed that more shoppers in Ireland were finding the current economic climate tough.
The study shows that 31pc of those who took part said they were struggling to make ends meet.
Ms Healy said: “This is no surprise: rising grocery inflation means that consumers are increasingly feeling the pinch.”
After grocery spending hit a record high in December, shoppers have looked to rein in costs in January. This trend would typically boost the share of own-label products.
She said grocery spending and the volume sold on promotion over the latest 12-week period remained at a record low of just 19.6pc.
This suggests that shoppers are managing their budgets through everyday choices rather than increased promotional purchasing.
Own-label products accounted for 43.4pc of total grocery spend, up 0.7 of a percentage point on the previous month,
Shoppers spent more than €1.7bn on own-label goods over the latest 12-week period.
The strong performance of premium own-label goods also continued, with growth standing at 5pc.
Branded products remained resilient, growing 7.3pc and ahead of the total market, which grew at 5.2pc.
Among the retailers, Dunnes holds 24.8pc market share, up on the previous 12-week period and with sales growth of 4.5pc year on year.
Larger trips and new shopper recruits contributed an additional €29.8m to its overall performance.
Tesco holds just under a quarter of the market, at 24.4pc, with value growth of 6.5pc year on year.
An influx of new shoppers contributed an additional €27.9m to the chain’s overall performance.
SuperValu holds 19.4pc market share, with a value growth of 0.4pc. The rise comes after the retail chain cut the price of Kerrygold butter and dropped prices on 500 items, mainly own-brand, it sells.
It remains the most frequently visited grocer, averaging 22 trips per shopper, while new shopper recruits over the 12-week period contributed an additional €36.7m to its overall performance.
Lidl was once again the fastest-growing grocer, with its value growth at 12.2pc and holding 13.2pc of the market. Alongside recruiting new shoppers in-store, existing shoppers picked up more volume in store, with both groups combined contributing an additional €30m to overall performance, Worldpanel said.
Aldi holds 10.4pc market share, with its value growth at 1.7pc, driven by an influx of new shoppers who drove an additional €13.8m in sales.
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