Distiller Pernod Ricard, whose brands include Absolut vodka and Martell cognac, is raising prices on its spirits and wines in the UK to offset the depreciation of the pound after Britons voted to leave the European Union.

Prices were increased in March by an unspecified amount as inflation is expected to accelerate, according to slides prepared for an investor presentation by Christian Porta, who manages Pernod Ricard’s business in Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Latin America.

The increases, disclosed Wednesday as Prime Minister Theresa May moved to trigger formal Brexit negotiations, underline inflationary pressure in the UK economy from the weaker currency. Prices in the UK rose 2.3 per cent in February, the Bank of England said last week, increasing at a more rapid clip than the bank’s target for the first time in three years.

Any tariffs that result from Brexit could lift prices further on goods imported from the EU.

Paul Polman, chief executive officer of Unilever, which became embroiled in a public dispute with UK retailer Tesco after seeking to increase prices on its Dove soap and Marmite spread, said in January that Britons should get used to higher prices. Wm Morrison Supermarkets and other retailers have warned of price increases but say they can’t pass along the full effect of higher costs because of tough competition. Others, including Mondelez International, have shrunk sizes of products like Toblerone chocolate bars in order to hold costs steady.

Pernod Ricard CEO Alexandre Ricard said at a media event in London in February that profit margins in the UK, where imported brands such as Perrier-Jouet champagne generate 90 per cent of the distiller’s sales, are not sustainable in the long term without price increases.

The company would like the U.K. government to negotiate a free-trade agreement with the EU as early as possible, Ricard has said. That position was echoed Wednesday by a trade group.

“We want the UK government to pursue as open a trade policy as possible” and transpose relevant EU single-market legislation into U.K. law, Julie Hesketh-Laird, the Scotch Whisky Association’s acting CEO, said in an emailed statement.

How Brexit affected Britain's favourite foods from Weetabix to Marmite Show all 8 1 /8 How Brexit affected Britain's favourite foods from Weetabix to Marmite How Brexit affected Britain's favourite foods from Weetabix to Marmite Weetabix Chief executive of Weetabix Giles Turrell has warned that the price of one of the nation’s favourite breakfast are likely to go up this year by low-single digits in percentage terms. Reuters How Brexit affected Britain's favourite foods from Weetabix to Marmite Nescafé The cost of a 100g jar of Nescafé Original at Sainsbury’s has gone up 40p from £2.75 to £3.15 – a 14 per cent rise—since the Brexit vote. PA How Brexit affected Britain's favourite foods from Weetabix to Marmite Freddo When contacted by The Independent this month, a Mondelez spokesperson declined to discuss specific brands but confirmed that there would be "selective" price increases across its range despite the American multi-national confectionery giant reporting profits of $548m (£450m) in its last three-month financial period. Mondelez, which bought Cadbury in 2010, said rising commodity costs combined with the slump in the value of the pound had made its products more expensive to make. Cadbury How Brexit affected Britain's favourite foods from Weetabix to Marmite Mr Kipling cakes Premier Foods, the maker of Mr Kipling and Bisto gravy, said that it was considering price rises on a case-by-case basis Reuters How Brexit affected Britain's favourite foods from Weetabix to Marmite Walkers Crisps Walkers, owned by US giant PepsiCo, said "the weakened value of the pound" is affecting the import cost of some of its materials. A Walkers spokesman told the Press Association that a 32g standard bag was set to increase from 50p to 55p, and the larger grab bag from 75p to 80p. Getty How Brexit affected Britain's favourite foods from Weetabix to Marmite Marmite Tesco removed Marmite and other Unilever household brand from its website last October, after the manufacturer tried to raise its prices by about 10 per cent owing to sterling’s slump. Tesco and Unilever resolved their argument, but the price of Marmite has increased in UK supermarkets with the grocer reporting a 250g jar of Marmite will now cost Morrisons’ customers £2.64 - an increase of 12.5 per cent. Rex How Brexit affected Britain's favourite foods from Weetabix to Marmite Toblerone Toblerone came under fire in November after it increased the space between the distinctive triangles of its bars. Mondelez International, the company which makes the product, said the change was made due to price rises in recent months. Pixabay How Brexit affected Britain's favourite foods from Weetabix to Marmite Maltesers Maltesers, billed as the “lighter way to enjoy chocolate”, have also shrunk in size. Mars, which owns the brand, has reduced its pouch weight by 15 per cent. Mars said rising costs mean it had to make the unenviable decision between increasing its prices or reducing the weight of its Malteser packs. iStockphoto

A fall in the pound’s value could buoy foreign demand for Pernod Ricard’s Glenlivet and Chivas Regal whisky brands, Ricard has said.

Scotch is Britain’s largest food-and-drink export and contributes £5bn ($6.2bn) annually to the UK economy.