The Co-op is now using artificial intelligence to detect shoplifters after theft costs rose by 19% (up to £39.5m) in the first half of the year.
The technology will also be able to detect assaults on staff.
The member-owned business, which returned to profit despite the growing toll of shoplifting, has spent £18m so far this year on measures to protect staff, including rolling out body-worn cameras and fortified kiosks.
While the supermarket said it did not use facial recognition, it is participating separately in Project Pegasus. This is where CCTV images are shared with retailers and the police and then run through databases to identify serial thieves and dangerous individuals.
The Association of Convenience Stores said its members were reporting “high volume” and “very brazen and direct” incidents of shoplifting – with meat, cheese and alcohol typically being targeted.
The most recent figures for the outcomes of recorded crimes show that, of 436,171 cases of shoplifting, 71,741 led to a criminal charge that year.
Retailers have warned that some smaller shops are buying stolen goods from professional shoplifters who steal to order for criminal gangs to feed their addiction problems.
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