Food prices explode: government promises mix of measures!

Food prices explode: government promises mix of measures!

The rising food prices are currently a hotly debated topic in Austrian politics. ÖVP general secretary Nico Marchetti commented on Sunday evening in "ZiB2" about the challenges that are due for autumn. Even if the Federal Government announced measures and solutions, specific suggestions failed to materialize. In the debate about the pricing in particular, Marchetti excluded state pricing to avoid supply bottlenecks and empty shelves. Rather, he pleads for a "mix of measures", which should include cheaper electricity prices and more transparency, among other things. According to Marchetti, over 100 locations, including train stations and airports, will be monitored in the future in order to proactively take action against youth bands.

The current price situation is alarming for many consumers. An analysis of Foodwatch shows that food prices rose on average by 34 percent compared to 2020, while for example, princess beans became up to 72 percent more expensive in the same period. The increase in cheap products remains in particular, the prices of which have increased almost twice as much between 2020 and 2024 as those of branded products. These developments mainly affect people with low incomes who are increasingly dependent on cost -effective foods. There is a lack of transparency regarding the composition of food prices and the distribution of profits, which provides a demand for measures to combat possible abuse by large trading companies.

challenges and causes of the price increases

The consumer advice also promote intensive price observation and require a specialized area for monitoring food prices in order to make pricing and margins understandable. While similar positions in other countries such as France, exist, many actors in the industry do not recognize any need for such an observation center and warn of additional bureaucracy. Nevertheless, there is a broad consensus that the food retail trade is competitive, but high profit potential has been postponed by agriculture to retail.

• food prices have been increased by 30 percent since 2021.
• The inflation rate in Germany last was 2.4 percent in February 2025.
• hidden price increases are observed by adjustments in filling quantities and recipes.

The price increases are due to various factors, such as higher costs for energy, fertilizers and feed, as well as a shortage of workers that raises personnel costs. In addition, climatic changes lead to more frequent misses, which continues to promote the price pressure. An example of the volatility of food prices is the butter price, which has been subject to strong fluctuations since the beginning of the Ukraine War. The price increase in the summer of 2023 made German brand butter cheaper than before the war, although prices reached its peak shortly before Christmas 2024.

For further information on the current prices and the regulatory demands that affect the market, see OE24, ZDF and [Consumer Center] (https://www.consumerzentral.de/wissen/freifensmittelproduktion/steigende- Lebensmittelprise-fakten-urats-71788).