The increase in energy costs is already impacting the prices of food products. It is what ensures the Organization of consumers and users (TO FATHER) in an analysis of the evolution of basic food products in the last six months. The OCU assures that the increases are unprecedented in recent years and are especially evident in pasta, meats such as beef and chicken, milk and eggs. Carrots and apples are the products that fall the most. The consumer organization advises comparing prices, looking for substitute products and buying in the cheapest establishments as the only ways to try to escape the general increase.
The TO FATHER has analyzed the evolution of prices in the last six months of a selection of 23 basic food products of all categories, meat, fruits, vegetables, beverages, dairy, packaged food, drugstore and hygiene in 14 chains nationwide. The results of the study indicate that most of the selected products have increased their price, 13 compared to 10 that have decreased. In addition, the amount of the increases is much greater than that of the decreases, so that as a whole the result is that today the shopping basket is more expensive than 6 months ago.
Margarine, pasta, dairy products, some meats (chicken and veal) and eggs included in the analysis are the products that have increased their price the most, with increases between 8.3% and 21.2% in just 6 months. . On the downside, only three products have significantly lowered their price: shaving foam (-3.1%), Golden apples (-3.1%) and carrots (-9.9%) .
For the OCU, the main cause of these price increases, not common in recent years, are the high increases in the prices of electricity and fuel. These are products in which energy in its different production phases (production, conservation, transport and distribution) is a very important cost. In addition, in some of these products there has been a strong acceleration in the last two months, which gives clues about the influence of the increase in energy. The OCU does not take into account the rise in prices that tends to occur in the final stretch of the year.
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One of the elements that a pernicious circle can suppose for the establishment of prices is that a rise in a specific product spreads to others of a similar category. For the OCU, there is a significant risk that these increases will spread to other products and, above all, that they will consolidate over time.
Statements from distributors who have complained about the cost rise In the form of advance warnings of price increases, they can ultimately influence coordinated, but not agreed, increases. Price increases in an environment of strong competition such as that of the distribution sector in Spain may lead to new price structures being consolidated, although the rise in energy costs is not justified in proportion to the increases in supermarket shelves. Although electricity has risen 30%, the problem is that wages have not risen during the period in the same proportion. For the organization, the only way to face price rises is to show the positive effects of competition and buy in the cheapest stores.
Reference-www.elperiodico.com