Prices on these supermarket products will increase by up to 15% in France this year
Some products including beauty, hygiene, and pasta are set to fall in price
Climate change is one factor affecting coffee prices
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Negotiations between major French supermarkets and international distributors on product prices were finalised this weekend.
The results of these negotiations will dictate the cost of many items over the coming months.
The negotiations overall saw prices remain “quasi-stable… [which will be] beneficial to consumers after the years of inflation that we have experienced,” said delegate of the French supermarket federation Layla Rahhou, widely quoted in French media.
Products including beauty and hygiene goods are expected to see prices fall by around 2%.
Globally, the price of staple foods made from wheat (pasta and bread) are falling, which is likely to be reflected in the French market.
The cost of sugar and olive oil should also fall, the latter after strong harvests in Spain last autumn.
Read more: This low-cost supermarket olive oil is voted best by French consumer association
However, several products will see prices rise by around 2%, the rate of inflation in France last year.
Read more: How lower inflation rate is affecting food prices in France
Prices on some other products are expected to rise by as much as 15%.
These include orange juice, chocolate, and coffee, the major growing regions of which are being affected by changing climates.
Products that saw prices increase in 2024, for example butter which saw prices increase by up to 78%, will not necessarily see them reduce this year.
Big distributors have advantage
The negotiations had a deadline of March 1, although by mid-February most of those between supermarkets and smaller, local suppliers had already been completed.
The scale of major retailers means they have an advantage when negotiating with smaller suppliers, and in some cases were able to cut the prices for local products made in smaller amounts.
However negotiations between larger, international distributors and supermarkets were ongoing until the deadline.
Supermarkets were looking to decrease some prices for consumers in a bid to increase overall spending in shops, however distributors were asking for price rises of up to 15% for certain goods.
“Supermarkets have been forced to make a move towards manufacturers and specifically those with a dominant position in the market, brands that are completely unavoidable,” said marketing expert and lecturer Gaëlle Pantin-Sohier to TF1.
