French Supermarket Group Auchan Warns Food Prices to Rise

French supermarket prices will rise at least 6 percent in 2008 if suppliers do not modify demands for increases and laws remain unchanged.

Auchan Director of Food Purchasing Jean-Denis Deweine said,
however, the privately held company had not yet agreed any price hikes and was
waiting to see if parliament changes rules that govern its negotiations with
suppliers.
"Normally by Oct. 15 we have agreed all our contracts
for the next year. All 1,500 of them. This year we have done none … At the
moment we are seeking to postpone these increases until next year," he
told a news conference.
Big food suppliers such as Danone and Lactalis have
announced steep price increases for November and December, citing the rising
cost of raw materials like milk.
Deweine said jam makers such as Materne were also seeking
increases of 14 to 16 percent and brewers were demanding 4 to 8 percent extra
for their beer.
Economists fear as a result French inflation — which has
remained moderate so far — is poised to spike higher this winter.