IANS | 01 Oct, 2023
Almost half (48.9 per cent) of the food products in Spain that are
subject to the government's sales tax reduction measures became more
expensive in September, according to Facua-Consumers in Action, one of
the country's main consumer associations.
After analysing the
prices of 962 food products in eight of the largest supermarket chains
in Spain: Alcampo, Aldi, Carrefour, Dia, Eroski, Lidl, Hipercor and
Mercadona, the association found that the prices of 470 items had gone
up since the start of the inflation reduction measures at the beginning
of the year, reports Xinhua news agency.
Fruit and vegetable
products saw the biggest increase (29.7 per cent), followed by olive oil
(20 per cent), rice and pasta (14.4 per cent), and milk and dairy
products (14 per cent).
Citing the government's regulation which
has put price caps on a wide range of food products, Ruben Sanchez,
secretary-general of Facua-Consumers in Action, said: "If someone has
increased profit margins, be they supermarkets, be they manufacturers or
packagers, be they the producers, then that someone would be violating
the conditions set by the legislation."
According to the
association, the increase in food prices intensified from 6.7 per cent
in January to 30.8 per cent in March, 43.8 per cent in May, 47 per cent
in July and 48.9 per cent in September.
"We have filed several
complaints with the Ministry of Consumer Affairs in recent weeks and we
will do so again in the next few days based on the data from September,"
Sanchez said.
The association also wants regional or state
consumer authorities to look into the causes of price increases,
including the pricing formulas applied by the distribution chains and
their suppliers.
