Kiama residents have long complained about being held to ransom by the monopoly of their Woolworths store.
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But a survey by the Mercury of a selected basket of items has shown there is no difference in price between Illawarra Woolworths stores - except when it comes to bananas.
At Kiama, bananas looked either too green or too old for the price of $3.48 a kilo, but up the road at Shellharbour's Stoney Range Woolworths some nice-looking bananas were being sold for $2.98 a kilo.
A nearby sign said they were $2.48, but a quick check found they cost $2.98 - however, because we pointed out the discrepancy, they came for free.
Bananas were the same price at Wollongong Woolies.
Fairfax economist writer Jessica Irvine has said there is only one economic indicator Australians watch: banana prices. Perhaps that's how we should judge supermarkets.
