“The cost of a glass bottle has even increased by 100% compared to last year,” Breweries to Visit Brand said yesterday on the sidelines of the event. Mr. Sophocles Panagiotou, President of the Hellenic Brewers Association and head of the Septem microbrewery. “Companies in several categories announce prices at the beginning of the year. We have been working with the same price list since February 15, 2022, so none of the price hikes that occurred after the start of the war in Ukraine on February 24, 2022 are not taken into account,” he added.

These phrases actually reflect two of the top five reasons why inflation in food and beverages; remains at an extremely high level despite the de-escalation energy prices and his general consumer price index. Yesterday Greek Statistical Office announced inflation at 7%, a single-digit change in the overall consumer price index for the fourth month in a row, but at the same time, the increase in the food price index was 15.4%, which means that the so-called. “food inflation” remains at double-digit levels for the tenth consecutive month in the last twelve months and even exceeds the 15% level for the third consecutive month.

What did Mr. Panagiotu actually say? Firstlythat prices for the first and mainly for the second materials (such as packaging materials, be it glass, plastic or paper) have not decreased and, Secondlythat there is a time lag in the pass-through of rising production costs to consumer prices. Another example is telling: producer prices for aquaculture fish hardly take into account the increase in production costs that began at the end of 2021 and is expected to be taken into account this year, in particular, costs increased by 25%, for the simple reason that the increase The fish cycle is 18 months.

Prices for the first and especially for the second materials (glass, plastic, paper) have not yet sunk.

And if you think that the time lag in postponing consumer price increases only applies to small businesses, you’re wrong. At the same event Alexandros Danielides, managing director of Athens Brewery, a subsidiary of multinational beer giant Heineken, said the company raised prices by 6% last year and 9% this year. It should also be noted that on Tuesday, Coca-Cola 3E management warned of higher prices in 2023 as it estimates that the cost of a case sold will increase by 10-13% per case. Mondelez (now owner of Chipita) has already carried out a revaluation and its management still sees no sign of cost reduction, while Unilever also announced a continuation of the revaluation last week and its CFO indicated that the revaluation covered only 75% of the burden. production costs, and for the rate of profit to return to pre-war levels, the rise in prices must exceed the rise in costs.

OUR third reason the fact that food prices remain high is due to the small size of the Greek market, which does not encourage price competition over time.

But there is also another reason what do the analysts of the specified market indicate, who they spoke with “Catimerini”: Consumer shifts to transactions, even to “household basket” transactions, lead suppliers to expect higher rates of return, always within the limits of the notorious kickback regulation, of course, essentially creating a vicious cycle of precision.

According to market estimates, but as can be seen from the above, food inflation will remain at a very high level at least until the end of the first half of the year. Even if lower food inflation is recorded from next month, it is likely that this is more due to the so-called “base effect”, i.e. the fact that the comparison will be made with periods when prices have already been significantly between March 2022 of the year.

Food accuracy is an international issue

The ever-increasing prices of food and basic necessities are now turning into a headache for the authorities and a scourge for consumers in Europe and America, which not only reduce the standard of living of the population, but sometimes make some basic necessities unaffordable. In France and the UK, there is pressure mainly on large Supermarket to establish measures in line with the “basket of households” promoted by the Greek government.

A related report by the British newspaper The Guardian refers to the UK’s most luxurious supermarket, Waitrose, which, while targeting high-income groups, has taken the initiative since yesterday to offer about 1/3 of its products at discounted prices. This is a large number of products, including coffee, carrots and butter. According to the British newspaper, even Waitrose customers find it difficult to cope with the accuracy of the dishes. Waitrose announced that as of yesterday, prices will be reduced by an average of 14%, but 25% of items will be reduced by 20%. He estimated the measure would cost him £100 million. The announcement followed data released that showed food prices jumped another 16.7% in the four weeks to Jan. 22. And as the Guardian points out, British families pay an extra £788 a year for food.

Indeed, at the beginning of the week, French Finance Minister Brinot Le Maire called on retailers to help consumers cope with high prices. “The rise in food prices is a serious cause for concern and everyone should help to cope with this problem,” he stressed, speaking to the French television channel RTL, and added that “the state should take its part, and retailers should also do what something more.” And while big chains like Carrefour and Casino have so far not shown a willingness to respond to the government’s call, smaller chains like discounters Lidl and Systeme U recently launched their own initiative with 150 products under their own brand names. brands that encourage consumers to buy at low prices.Others, such as Auchan, presented their own proposals and said such measures should target the prices of essential products such as meat, fish, fruits and vegetables.

At the same time, high food prices are affecting large segments of the US population, becoming prohibitive for the lowest income earners with $50,000 a year. A related New York Times report highlights that across the country, rising food prices in both stores and restaurants have forced many Americans, especially those over the age of 65, to change their eating habits. Food prices rose 10% from last year and are expected to rise another 7% this year. Eggs, once on the American daily table, have become very expensive, averaging $4.25 a dozen, compared to just $1.78 a year ago, the American newspaper notes.