But house-brand items are catching on with cost-conscious shoppers in a big way.

With prices of many food items rising, sales of house-brand items at supermarket chains - Giant and Cold Storage - rose by between 10 and 20 per cent last year, compared with 2006.

At supermarkets like Carrefour and FairPrice, the story is the same: Double-digit growth.

The common items picked up? Bread, rice, toilet rolls and kitchen towels.

Business is so good that other markets are jumping on the bandwagon.

Budget supermarket chain Sheng Siong, for instance, began stocking its shelves with house-brand versions of ice, detergent, toilet rolls and even abalone in the second half of last year.

Many stores - ranging from Watson's to Shop N Save - have had house-brand versions for items ranging from wet tissues to the painkiller paracetamol for some time.

But sales are taking off now, because rising inflation - Singapore's inflation rate hit a 25-year high of 4.4 per cent in December - and the higher cost of raw materials and production have pushed prices of everyday items ever higher.

House brands came under the spotlight again on Sunday, when Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong addressed the issue of the rising cost of living here and said Singaporeans should 'go for cheaper house brands' to save money.

He added that there is 'no need to buy branded bread' as 'bread is bread, rice is rice'.

Mr Lee used the house brand example to make the point that Singaporeans can overcome the problem by working together; the Government would do its part to help - through the Budget, for instance - but people would also have to make adjustments.

Buying house brands could lead to big savings. On average, such items are about 15 per cent cheaper than others, but the difference can be as much as 50 per cent.

Generally, savings on essentials are smaller. Rice, for example, is $1.50 cheaper for a 5kg bag than a comparative brand.

But on items like mineral water and dental floss, savings are greater: A six-pack of mineral water by Carrefour costs $7.90, compared to $12.50 for a brand-name product, while dental floss by Guardian Pharmacy costs $3.50 compared to $5.50 for the branded version.

There is added good news for shoppers on a tight budget, too: More such products are on the way.

Giant Hypermarket - which has about 1,000 types of house-brand products - launched 25 new ones over the past three months. And to meet increasing consumer demand, FairPrice aims to introduce another 3,000 house-brand items in the next five years.

It currently has more than 2,000 products under its house brand.

So why are these products cheaper?

A spokesman for FairPrice said costs are cut because products are sourced from all over the world and bought direct from the source to 'cut down on middle-men handling'.

He added: 'We then pass the cost savings to customers. Bulk purchase has also helped FairPrice to achieve lower prices.'

He added that low prices do not mean low quality.

Though most customers The Straits Times spoke to are sold, some, like Madam Jenny Lee, 44, are not.

She said: 'House brands may be cheaper, but when it comes to products like bread and oil, I stick to other brands. The quality is better.'

That, according to brand consultant Iskandar Muhd, 32, who advises companies on how to market their products, is a fallacy.

He said that 75 per cent of the time, 'people look at items from a branding point of view instead of quality of the workmanship'.

He added: 'Sometimes house-brand items and other branded items are exactly the same.'

limjess@sph.com.sg