Dutch to research EU grocery prices to create fair market

The Netherlands aims to kickstart research on how to resolve the differences in grocery prices across the bloc, citing the need to ensure a ‘fair market’, outgoing Economy Minister Micky Adriaansens (VVD/Renew) announced on Monday.

The minister addressed the matter during the EU Competitiveness Council in Brussels, gaining support from her Belgian and Luxembourgish counterparts, Pierre-Yves Dermagne (PS/S&D) and Franz Fayot (LSAP/S&D).

“There will always be certain price differences, but you want a fair market,” Adriaansens explained in an interview with Dutch radio station BNR following the Council meeting.

“In Europe, we have a big single market, from which we want all kinds of benefits. But then that has to be reflected in the supermarket,” she added.

Adriaansens pointed towards grocery prices in Germany, where purchase prices for retailers are lower than in all three Benelux members, giving the country a competitive advantage and lowering consumer costs.

While she restrained from demanding an EU-wide fixed purchase price, the outgoing minister suggested that EU regulations concerning food labelling and product standards could be revised to provide a more even playing field for all member states.

“These [labels and standards] vary quite a bit from country to country, which is also one of the reasons why there are differences in where you can buy your products,” she stated.

The Household Final Consumption Expenditure (HFCE), an index for the relative price of groceries in a given country, is higher than the EU average in all three Benelux countries.

In 2022, the price level index for final household expenditure in Belgium and the Netherlands was higher than the EU average by 14.8% and 16.7%, respectively, with Luxembourg acting as the trifecta’s frontrunner with a price level index of 36.8% above the EU average.

The Dutch expect to present the research results before the end of this year.

(Benedikt Stöckl | Euractiv.com)