French Economy and Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire stated on Sunday that some food costs would fall this year, amid fears that prices would climb as they did last year.
After many months of so-called “food inflation”, Le Maire promised the French that the prices of some foodstuffs would fall.
“You will see price cuts on butter, on oils, on certain products such as poultry, on certain meats, not just stabilisation.”
France is one of the countries “where prices have risen the most since January 2022”, with cumulative food inflation of 17.9% between January 2022 and August 2023, according to NielsenIQ analysis. Next came Spain with 17.2 per cent, the UK with 16.7 per cent, Italy with 16.4 per cent, Germany with 15.5 per cent, Belgium with 14.9 per cent and Portugal with 12.4 per cent.
Le Maire is convinced that the situation will improve once negotiations between food retailers and suppliers conclude on January 31. He referred to recent comments by major supermarket executives on price increases and added that prices will not climb to the levels reached since the outbreak of war in Ukraine.
Thierry Cotillard, chairman of Les Mousquetaires group (Intermarché, Netto, Bricomarché, Bricorama, etc.) lambasted producers for raising prices while raw material costs have been falling for months.
The good news is that double-digit inflation is over.
To signal its opposition to price increases by manufacturers, French supermarket giant Carrefour has already removed Pepsico brands (Pepsi-Cola, Lipton, Lay’s, Doritos, etc.) from its shelves.
“I think it would pose a lot of problems for our producers […], and I’m afraid it would make our farmers much more vulnerable.”
According to Daniel Ducrocq of NielsenIQ, France continues to lag behind its European neighbours in reducing food prices precisely because it has decided to hold commercial negotiations once a year.
Many associations and politicians are calling for the crisis to be solved by increasing the number of food vouchers to help people on the lowest incomes. However, Le Maire stated he favours increasing aid to associations and food banks.
Let’s forget about voucher policies, we don’t have the means today.
