Aldi will apply Maltesers and Haribo security labels costing less than £1

An Aldi branch has put security labels on packets of sweets worth just 85p.

The Rushey Green branch of Budget supermarket in Catford, south London, has put yellow safety stickers on a range of its confectionery.

Tags have been attached to a children’s snack bar priced at 85p, Haribo Tangfastics is £1 and a pack of five Cadbury Twirls retails at £1.05.

It comes after a number of items in supermarkets were given security tags in recent months following price jumps

This included baby formula, cheese, butter and even milk.

In July, Asda put security labels on 1kg containers of Lurpak as the price approached £10.

Last month, a Tesco store in Cornwall put labels on milk, although the latter said it was a case of human error.

Aldi said the safety labels on the candy pack at its Catford store are not a national guideline but “something used in an individual store in response to a local issue”.

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Consumer champion Martyn James told the Telegraph that the labeling of low-priced items was “extremely worrying”.

He added: “Marking items of exceptionally low value is a complete overreaction and gives society the completely false impression that we are stuffing our pockets.

“The rise in shoplifting in recent months has been necessary because people can barely afford the food.

“In many cases supermarkets warn shoplifters but turn a blind eye to law enforcement and that is the humane approach.”

Security tags are commonly used on expensive items or dangerous items in supermarkets such as alcohol, razors and even perfume.

The labels can only be removed after a person has paid and a vendor has removed the box. If a person took an item with a security tag from the store without payment, a loud alarm would sound.

At Co-Op, detergent and baby milk brands like Aptamil and Cow and Gate have also been placed in security crates.

The tubs of formula milk powder range from £10.25 to £18 for 800g.

A Co-Op spokesman previously told MailOnline this was “not a UK policy” and the company had “not seen any increase in theft”.

Milk cartons at the Tesco Extra store in the village of Pool in Cornwall were fitted with individual plastic security tags last month.

It has been reported (Cornwall Live) that the store has suffered a spate of thefts of milk – particularly of four-pint containers.

But Tesco denied that was the reason for the labeling, saying it was due to “human error”.

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