The rising cost of groceries: Navigating food prices in Spain
Prices have increased in six out of ten products across Spain over the last year
On average, food prices increased by 3.5% over the past 12 months, but the cumulative rise since 2021 is a staggering 35.5%. This sharp increase has significantly impacted purchasing power, forcing families to rethink their shopping habits.
A recent report from the Organisation of Consumers and Users (OCU) sheds light on these trends, based on an extensive analysis of 155,489 prices across 1,070 shops in 65 cities, including online supermarkets. The study focused on a basket of 238 essential items, spanning 16 categories, from fresh produce to packaged foods and hygiene products.
“Over the past year, prices have been contained. They have stopped rising as much. But that doesn't mean that consumers have it any easier now. Many families have stopped eating meat or fish because prices remain at very high levels,” said Ileana Izverniceanu, director of communications for OCU.
The data reflects a troubling shift in dietary habits: with many households now spending a larger percentage of their budgets just to buy the same basket of groceries, nutritional quality is taking a hit.
“Many households have been forced to buy more processed products and fewer fresh products,” Ms Izverniceanu added.
On a positive note, some products have seen significant price drops, such as sunflower oil (-23.1%), salad tomatoes (-20.9%) and margarine (-18%).
As families seek budget-friendly options, white label products have become increasingly popular. However, even these alternatives have seen an average price increase of 2.8%, only slightly lower than branded products.
Interestingly, for the first time since 2021, a few supermarket chains have reduced their prices. Carrefour Express, Lidl and Aldi all reported minor price decreases, while others, like Supercor and El Corte Inglés, have significantly raised their prices, with increases of 7.2% and 9.7%, respectively.
As for the autonomous communities, Galicia is the cheapest region for grocery shopping, followed by La Rioja, the
Valencian Community, Castilla y León, Extremadura and
Andalucía, while Madrid, the Basque Country, the Balearic Islands and the Canary Islands are the most expensive.
In addition, it has asked the CNMC and the Ministry of Agriculture to “ensure that the reduction in production costs is passed on to consumers at the same speed as the increases in recent years, avoiding extraordinary profits to the detriment of consumers.”
Images: Freepik/OCU
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