Alistair Darling has called a Downing Street summit with Britain's biggest supermarkets over the threat posed to the UK economy by spiralling food prices.

The Times has learnt that the Chancellor will meet representatives of the retail chains, the National Farmers' Union, the British Retail Consortium and commodity traders today.

The move is the latest in a round of high-profile meetings held by the Chancellor since his £2.7billion climbdown this month over the controversial 10p tax rate. He met the Association of British Insurers yesterday.

The meeting comes as the Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR) claims that increasing global demand for agricultural produce could force up food prices in the UK by 5 per cent a year over the next decade - nearly double the official rate of inflation. A CEBR report asserts that food inflation among the big four supermarkets is running at between 4.1 per cent at Asda to 6.1 per cent at Tesco.

Douglas McWilliams, the CEBR chief executive, said: “The problem is going to be a long-term one rather than a short-term one. As they say: ‘You ain't seen nothing yet'.”

A Treasury spokesman declined to comment on today's meeting, saying that it was private. Mr Darling reflected his concern at rising food prices last week when he urged European counterparts to consider a fundamental reform of agricultural subsidies and tariffs. In a letter to finance ministers, he said: “Rising global food and energy prices are increasing inflationary pressures across the world economy, hitting poorest households the hardest and threatening to reverse the progress we have made over the past few years in reducing poverty.”

Ernst & Young, the accountant, said this week that rising food and energy prices accounted for more than half the UK's 3 per cent inflation rate. Last month a survey indicated that the cost of a typical basket of 24 everyday items, such as milk, cornflakes and pasta, was 15 per cent higher than a year ago in Britain's three biggest supermarket chains.

Food producers say that further price rises may be on the way, depending on the wheat harvest this year. Analysts fear that the weak pound may lead to imported inflation on food, given that the UK imports £14billion more food a year than it exports. Tesco and Asda confirmed yesterday that they would be attending the meeting. J Sainsbury that said it was being represented by the British Retail Consortium. Invitations to the chief executives went out late last week.

Andrew Opie, the food policy director of the British Retail Consortium, said that food inflation had to be viewed in perspective, given that prices have been increasing at a slower rate than the cost of living for a decade.

He added that the Government had to make a link between the administrative burden on the food industry, including proposals to impose an industry ombudsman, and the threat of further price rises.

Vince Cable, the Liberal Democrats' Treasury spokesman, said that Mr Darling was engaging in “potentially dangerous gimmickry”, given that many of the root causes of food inflation were outside of his control.

Mr Cable said: “The problem is that by having such a high-profile meeting with supermarkets and farmers he is giving a distinct impression the Government can actually do something about it.”

Humphrey Feeds Comment: Price Costs Control is rarely best controlled by central government. It certainly is not sustainable when applied to agriculture. The cost of basic commodities is rising, along with fuel costs at about 1p/litre of diesel per week. If government tries to exert pressure on the supermarkets to resist (Canute like) the pressure of rising prices by squeezing agriculture, then the flow of agricultural produce from UK farms will dwindle.

Perhaps the Chancellor could re-direct his efforts and encourage UK supermarkets to just pass on the base rise in cost, whilst encouraging the supermarkets to leave their margin alone, rather than having to add 40-50% on top of every rise. Such rises are unwarranted, and are just profiteering!