2023-05-11 12:13:08
BFMTV SURVEY. More than 4 out of 10 French people have given up food purchases in recent months in the face of inflation. An increase in proportion compared to November 2022.
In a context of persistent inflation, the French continue to restrict their spending to preserve their purchasing power as much as possible. According to a new “L’Opinion en direct” survey conducted by the Elabe Institute for BFMTV*, more than 8 respondents (81%) out of 10 say they have given up on one category of expenditure at least once in recent months (food, shopping , holidays, treatments, etc.).
The French are increasingly giving up certain food purchases
Contrary to the other categories with the exception of shopping, the renunciation of food purchases has been on the rise since November (43%, +4 points), undoubtedly in connection with the surge in prices which continues on the shelves and is now close to the 15%.
Under these conditions, the French say they particularly deprive themselves of meat (43%), fish (34%), cakes and biscuits (27%), organic products (26%) and charcuterie (26%). They also change their habits by buying cheaper products than before (44%) or by buying smaller quantities (30%).
But more than food, the French have above all given up spending on shopping trips (53%, +2 points), going to the cinema, to restaurants or bars (49%, -2 points) or going on vacation or weekend (45%, -3). A third (34%, -3 points) of those questioned also say that they have not heated their home properly in recent months, while 20% have given up making a donation to associations (-5) and 17% care.
Nearly one in five French people (19%) say, on the contrary, that they have not given up anything for financial reasons in recent months.
45% of French people forced to restrict themselves to make ends meet
These deprivations reflect the difficulty of the French to cope with inflation. 79% of them say they have to “tighten their belts” compared to their usual lifestyle, including 25% “a lot”. And if 55% finally claim to be able to make ends meet by putting money aside (18%) or without restricting themselves too much (37%), 45% claim on the contrary to have to restrict themselves (32%) or even dip into their reserves or borrow money (13%) to do so.
The difficulty of making ends meet is seen above all among employees and workers (57% have to restrict themselves), the inhabitants of rural municipalities and small towns (54%) and, from a political point of view, among voters Marine Le Pen (56%) and Jean-Luc Mélenchon (49%). Conversely, the majority of executives (70%) and voters of Emmanuel Macron (70%) say they do not need to restrict themselves.
The agri-food industry and mass distribution singled out
Faced with soaring food prices, the French point to food manufacturers “who are increasing their prices too sharply” (66%, +13 points since March) and large retailers who “do not reduce their margins enough” ( 63%, +11 points) as the main culprits, far ahead of the war in Ukraine (36%, -12 points), climate change which is reducing the volume of harvests (22%, -11) or farmers who would ask for increases in prices too high (7%, -1).
To mitigate the shock on purchasing power, the government has implemented a series of measures which “go in the right direction but are insufficient” for 46% of respondents, while 37% consider that “they do not improve not at all the situation in terms of purchasing power”. 16% think the opposite.
Still, the French believe that none of the main opposition parties would do better than Emmanuel Macron to limit the impact of inflation. Only a quarter think that Marine Le Pen and the National Rally would do better than the current head of state in this area if they were in power, 45% neither better nor worse and 30% worse.
They are also only 16% to think that Jean-Luc Mélenchon and the Nupes would do better, once morest 44% neither better nor worse and 39% less well. Finally, 6% consider that Les Républicains would do better, 69% neither better nor worse and 25% less well.
Survey carried out by Elabe according to the quota method from May 9 to 10, 2023 among a sample of 1000 people representative of residents of mainland France aged 18 and over.
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