MADRID – Shopping in Spain is getting more and more expensive. This has been confirmed by the consumer organisation OCU. This established the average price increase at 9.4% compared to March last year. Households will spend €500 more on basic food in 2022.
The price increases are very noticeable in the first quarter of 2022, largely due to rising energy prices, fuel costs, and the war in Ukraine.
OCU follows price development
For many years, the OCU has been monitoring the evolution of the prices of food, drugstore products, and hygiene products in supermarkets across Spain. The organisation assesses the price development of 156 consumer products in 9 national supermarket chains: fresh and packaged foodstuffs and drugstore products and hygiene products.
Basic products in the daily shopping cart
Data collected by the OCU in March this year shows that the rise in electricity, gas, and fuel prices is not only triggering the Consumer Price Index (CPI), but also staple foods and products in the daily shopping cart.
84% of products are more expensive
84% of the products that the OCU tracks in price (meat, fish, fruit, oils, dairy products, general foods, as well as cleaning and hygiene items) are now more expensive than a year ago.
The most striking increases
The most pronounced increases are in oil, especially olive oil (up almost 54%) and sunflower oil (more than 49% up) from private labels. Margarine, pasta, Canary Island bananas, or salmon also exceed 30% price increases.
Price drops
Fortunately, not all products increase in price. According to the OCU, 16% of tracked products are now cheaper. This group mainly includes drugstore products, such as soap, toothpaste, razors, or bathroom cleaners, but some foods have become cheaper.
Unfortunately, the price decreases are a lot smaller than the price increases. The products that have fallen in price the most are pork tenderloin (now 9.4% cheaper) and onions (8.5% less than a year ago).
€500 extra on basic products
If this continues, the average spending on basic food items of Spanish households, according to OCU calculations, could be around €500 more in 2022 than in previous years.
More families in trouble
Those extra costs are added to the higher prices for fuel and energy. As a result, more and more families in Spain are struggling to cover their daily expenses. In 2021 this was 8% of the population for whom this was the case. While that percentage could rise considerably this year, according to OCU.
Also read: Cheapest supermarkets
