The prices of the typical household basket are lower in Greek supermarkets compared to France, England, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Germany, Romania, according to a price comparison survey in Greece with seven other European countries, published by Institute of Retail Consumer Goods Research IELKA.
More specifically, IELKA presented the results of a price comparison survey (based on data from price comparison platforms in each country, but also on prices from supermarket chains) on a typical basket of products in large supermarket chains in Greece in March 2024 and respectively in France, the United Kingdom, Spain, Italy, Portugal, Germany and Romania. In fact, the price comparison is made with and without the value of VAT, which differs in each country.
In addition to VAT, factors that should be taken into account when comparing prices between different countries are:
-The amount of taxation in each country
-The consumption habits in each country (e.g. the trend for packaged or non-packaged products, private label products, etc.)
-Natural disasters due to climate change
-The distance of the country from the production centers of central Europe and the corresponding costs
-The cost of energy
-The cost of fuel and general transport
-The complexity of the geography of each country (e.g. road network, islands etc.)
-Market size, purchasing power and corresponding economies of scale in product procurement
-The export-import balance in relation to food and its raw materials
-The various production costs (energy, raw materials, wage costs, financial costs, bureaucracy)
-The productivity of industry and retail trade in each country
-The seasonality of demand and supply (e.g. due to tourism or weather conditions)
-The wage-labour cost
According to IELKA, “the general conclusion of the survey is that Greece’s supermarkets provide Greek consumers with access to products for their typical basket at lower prices on average which is a result of the organized efforts of suppliers and retailers to contain prices over the last years.”
