Sainsbury’s is slashing the prices of hundreds of essential groceries to match discount rival Aldi.

The supermarket chain told the PA news agency it is launching an Aldi price match scheme as the UK’s largest grocers continue attempts to thwart the rapid growth of German discounters Aldi and Lidl.

Sainsbury’s said its commitment will mean that around 250 products will see prices reduced to match the equivalent items at Aldi.

It said the move will focus on its most popular items with customers, including meat, chicken, fresh fruit and vegetables, and dairy.

Mark Given, chief marketing officer, told PA that the price reductions will be funded by a “significant investment” by Sainsbury’s.

“We recognise that giving customers good value is a core part of our strategy so will invest to keep prices low,” he said.

“When we’ve completed research, our shoppers have highlighted our quality and value for money, but with customers who also shop in other supermarkets we need to improve our price perception.

“We need to communicate this better with customers because the value is there.”

It said price reductions will include reducing a kilo of plain flour from 80p to 45p, a kilo of baby potatoes from 95p to 65p and a 21-day matured rump steak from £2.50 to £2.32.

The price match is the first new initiative of chief executive Simon Roberts’ plan, announced in November, to put food back “at the heart of the business”.

The cuts, which will primarily involve own-brand products, come almost a year after Tesco launched its own Aldi price match scheme to keep its prices in competition with the fast-growing discounters.

Aldi has seen its rapid sales growth fall behind some of its rivals during the pandemic, as its smaller online proposition meant it has not been able to fully take advantage of the booming demand for home deliveries.

Figures from Kantar showed that Aldi sales grew by 5.7% in the 12 weeks to January 24, compared with 12.2% growth across the UK grocery market as a whole.

Sainsbury’s sales were 12% higher for the period after expanding its online delivery capacity, according to the data.