German consumers demand price cap on food products

By: Trademagazin editor Date: 2022. 12. 13. 09:17

As a result of the war in Ukraine, food prices have soared so abruptly that some consumers in Germany now have to heavily cut back on their purchases. In a survey, they are now calling politicians to account.

91 per cent of customers call for price cap on food and a mere 9 per cent said that the government should refrain from getting involved in pricing.

“Customers experience food price increases as so severe that they by all means want to be able to shop more cheaply again,” retail expert of management consultant firm Oliver Wyman Vanessa Seip said summarizing the results of a representative survey of 1,000 consumers in Germany.

Possibly inspired by the gasoline rebate and the gas price brake, about half of the respondents would be glad to see a cap on price increase in certain product groups. Moreover, a third of those surveyed consider a government-set price cap on an average shopping basket as a solution. As many as 10 per cent think it would be fair if the state subsidized canteen meals.

While in 2020, 79 per cent of all consumers rated the performance of the retail sector as good or very good, this figure has dropped to 36 percent within two years. Recently, as many as 18 per cent consider retail performance as inadequate or weak, according to the survey.

“Unlike during the Corona crisis, when consumers gave retailers and their protective concepts an excellent mark, they feel being left alone in times of inflation,” Seip said.

Lebensmittelpraxis