Australia's top consumer watchdog, Gina Cass-Gottlieb, has expressed concern about supermarkets charging for fresh fruit and vegetables per item, not by weight. This practice is confusing customers and can mean some shoppers pay more without realizing it. Guardian Australia found examples where smaller bananas were sold at higher prices per kilogram than larger ones, but customers likely missed this without doing extra math. Cass-Gottlieb said grocery stores should use consistent unit pricing so shoppers can easily compare costs within a store and between stores. "It is of concern," she said before a speech on the regulator’s new priorities. "The review and the strengthening of the unit pricing code is the right way to address this." Cass-Gottlieb stressed that supermarkets play a huge role in household budgets, so pricing must be clear and truthful. This issue comes as inflation rises and groceries become more expensive. Meanwhile, the ACCC is suing big chains Coles and Woolworths over “illusory” discounts on daily products, but Cass-Gottlieb could not discuss the ongoing court case. Woolworths, Coles, and Aldi have all increased per-item pricing for produce, often without showing price per weight. Aldi stores don’t have scales. Online pricing varies: Woolworths uses fixed item prices; Coles and Aldi weigh produce for pricing. Supermarkets say per-item prices help shoppers budget faster. Current rules allow pricing by item or kilogram, but government reforms to fix this gap are still pending. The rise of per-item pricing is also raising price gaps since bigger produce sells first, leaving smaller, sometimes costlier options behind. Online buyers cannot choose sizes. Consumer advocate Ian Jarratt says all produce should be priced by weight with clear displays. "If they want to give an approximate item price they can do that, but it should be charged on a per kilo basis," he said. "The base problem with what supermarkets are doing is that there is not sufficient transparency. Why should you be penalised because someone else picked up the big cauliflowers?"