The biggest jump in food prices since 1980 pushed British inflation back into double digits last month, matching a 40-year high in July in a new blow for households grappling with the cost-of-living crisis.

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said the consumer price index (CPI) increased by 10.1 percent in annual terms in September. A Reuters poll of economists had pointed to a reading of 10 percent, after a 9.9 percent rise in August.

Food and non-alcoholic beverages prices were the biggest driver of inflation in September as they rose by 14.5 percent, the biggest jump since April 1980 according to historical modeled estimates of the CPI.

The Consumer Prices Index including owner occupiers' housing costs (CPIH), which is the most comprehensive measure of inflation that extends CPI to include a measure of the costs associated with owning, maintaining and living in one's own home, known as owner occupiers' housing costs, along with council tax, rose by 8.8 percent in the 12 months to September 2022, up from 8.6 percent in August and returning to July's recent high, according to the ONS.

"Today's release highlights the danger that underlying inflation remains strong even as the economy weakens," said Paul Dales, chief UK economist at consultancy Capital Economics.

He pointed to rising core inflation, a measure that excludes volatile food and energy prices, which hit a new 30-year high of 6.5 percent.

Britain has been hit hard by the surge in European natural gas prices, which has added to post-COVID supply-chain bottlenecks and labor shortages, creating an intense squeeze on living standards.

(Source: Reuters with edits)