Despite revenue being impacted by the sale of the petrol forecourt business which completed in October, it was up £0.3bn £11.5bn from £11.2bn in 2021 with underlying operating, also impacted by the sale of the petrol forecourt business, profit maintained at £100m.

Underlying EBITDA was £490m, down by £15m (2021: £505m) while group profit before tax, including £319m of profit from the sale of the petrol forecourt business, was £247m, up by £190m. Net cash from operating activities rose to £455m, up by £277m and group net debt at £333m, improved by £587m.

Food revenue was up by £134m to £7.81bn and wholesale revenue up by £53m to £1.44bn. The results also showed that £100m of additional energy and salary inflation was absorbed and in Q4 £37m was invested in holding prices on key products. Active Co-op Membership grown for the first time in 5 years to 4.41 million members.

There was a £55m overall year-on -year investment into colleague pay including maintaining commitment to the real living wage and £12m invested in payments onto colleague membership cards during the cost of living crisis.

Allan Leighton, chair, Co-op commented: “The inflationary challenges facing most consumer-facing businesses are well known, so for our Co-op to have delivered this level of performance over the year is encouraging.

“We are, rightly, judged by our members on both the financial and social value we can create and it’s clear that we’ve delivered on both sides of this equation.  The future focus on growing membership is vital for ensuring the future success of our Co-op for generations to come.”

Shirine Khoury-Haq, chief executive Co-op, said: “It’s clear that our early action to significantly reduce our debt, improve our cash position, and tighten cost controls, has made a significant difference to the financial strength of our Co-op and has enabled us to look forward with confidence, despite continuing market uncertainty.

“We now have an even better foundation upon which to grow our businesses.  We’re also looking to grow our membership, putting membership at the heart of our Co-op, with ambitious plans to both attract new members, and deepen relationships with our existing members.”

Customers shopping in Sainsbury’s supermarkets or online will get discounts on over 300 items initially, spanning household products, pet food and confectionery, with Nectar Prices, when using the Nectar app or card at checkout.

Sainsbury’s said this is just the start as Nectar Prices will expand into more categories. Nectar customers will be able to access savings on products from laundry detergent to cereal, with selected items at half price.

For example, customers can expect to pay the following: Ariel All-in-1 pods washing liquid capsules original (39 washes), £5 normally £10.50 24x330ml Coke Zero, £5 normally £10 Nescafé Gold Blend coffee 200g, £4 normally £8.10 Oral-B Pro 3 3500 Cross Action Black & Travel Case, £45 normally £100.

All existing Nectar customers need to do to benefit from Nectar Prices is scan their app or swipe their card at the till to save. Customers shopping online will have their discounts applied automatically if their Nectar and Sainsbury’s accounts are linked.

Those who don’t have a Nectar card can still easily access Nectar Prices by downloading the app. Sainsbury’s will be the only retailer to offer the combination of lower prices for every loyalty customer through Nectar Prices and extra personalised discounts with Your Nectar Prices – previously My Nectar Prices – providing customers who use SmartShop with lower prices on the products they buy regularly.

Each week, with Your Nectar Prices, customers can find personalised lower prices with up to 30% off products specifically tailored to them available on the app or through the Nectar website. In December 2022, Nectar issued its 1 trillionth point– meaning over £5bn worth of points have been issued to Nectar users over the last 20 years - and last year at least £220m worth of points were issued.

Customers have had the option to either spend these on their food shopping, save them for a treat or exchange them for rewards across hundreds of Nectar partners. So far, customers who use Your Nectar Prices have saved over £61m since it launched in September 2021 and in December 2022 alone, Nectar customers saved £4.1m through personalised discounts at Sainsbury’s with Your Nectar Prices.

Additionally, customers can still get more value back from more of their spend by collecting Nectar points with over 350 leading retailers including eBay, Esso and Argos. Simon Roberts, chief executive at Sainsbury’s, said: “We are delighted to launch Nectar Prices, which will help millions of our customers save more on every trip to Sainsbury’s.

"There is much more to look forward to, we will keep refreshing Nectar Prices and increasing the variety of products on offer.

“It gets better, Nectar customers who shop in store with SmartShop will receive extra personalised value with Your Nectar Prices, bringing them the best prices on their favourite products. Our customers really are at the heart of every decision we make and we hope they find that Nectar Prices is an exciting way to bring them consistently great value all year round.”