A dad was left shocked after finding security tags on baby milk tubs at Sainsbury's.
Security tags operate via a transmitter that sounds out an alert when an item is removed from a shop and are taken off by staff when customers pay at the checkout.
Tags are normally used to prevent thefts of high-value items such as perfume, aftershave and alcohol.
However, the security tags can also be used sometimes to prevent shoplifters taking regularly swiped items such as cheese, meat and coffee.
One shocked dad-of-one said he was shocked at the tags being applied to baby milk tubs in Kent, he said: "I was shocked to see security tags on our baby formula.
"I thought those sort of things were reserved for big ticket items.
"It just shows how much the cost of living crisis is biting when items like this are being stolen on a regular basis."
Formula containers which cost up to £15 have been seen with security tags - a measure Sainsbury's says is not new.
The security tags on lower value items can also vary from store to store, according to Sainsbury's, as inflation stands at 9%.
Baby formula, essential for most youngsters, has suffered supply chain issues resulting in shortages in the UK and the US in the past two years, with America particularly hard-hit.
At the Staplehurst Sainsbury's branch in Kent, tubs of Aptamil follow-on milk, toddler milk, and organic, comfort and anti-reflux versions of the milk were seen with plastic tags on their lids.
Smaller bottles of follow-on milk, as well as Aptamil one, two, and three-years infant, follow-on and toddler milk didn't appear to have the tags, as well as some other brands.
A Sainsbury's spokesperson said: "This is just one of a range of security measures we have in place.
"And the decisions to tag some items will vary from store to store."
