2023-08-10 10:42:48
Less on the plates, differently too. The rise in prices is shaking up the eating habits of the French. For nearly two years, inflation has made a brutal comeback in France. It first focused on energy before spreading to food products. Between the last quarter of 2021 and the second quarter of 2023, the labels on the shelves soared by 18.4% according to INSEE.
Faced with this unprecedented outbreak, households reacted. And over this period of eighteen months, their food expenditure only increased by 4.2% in current euros. A very comprehensive study published at the end of July by panelist Nielsen shows that a third of French people now say they limit their purchases of food and other essential products. “Baskets are smaller, shopping is done day to day at the expense of large weekly shopping carts,” says the study.
Unheard of since 1980
Between the last quarter of 2021 and the second quarter of 2023, French food purchases thus decreased by 11.4% in volume according to INSEE, knowing that this indicator combines two distinct notions: the quantities purchased and the range of products selected. “This fall in food consumption has no precedent in the data compiled by INSEE since 1980”, was alarmed in a tweet François Geerolf, economist at the French Observatory of Economic Conditions (OFCE).
Our sales fell sharply in volume earlier and earlier in the month.
the boss of a retail giant
“Our sales are falling sharply in volume earlier and earlier in the month, a sign that the French are tightening their belts while waiting for their payday. There are households that are skipping more and more meals, ”analyzes the boss of a giant retailer.
Forced to rethink their budget, households filled their shopping carts a little less. They have also changed their consumption habits: the high level of prices has led them to switch to less expensive products – first prices, private labels, promotions – or to switch to less expensive brands that they did not necessarily frequent before . More than 16% of consumers favor local purchases in order to limit the use of their vehicle according to Nielsen.
For sociologist Julien Damon, the middle classes have been the most affected by “this shock”, because they are the ones who “are forced to change their consumption habits”, he explained last May in an interview with “Echos”.
Food insecurity
But inflation has also greatly increased food insecurity among the most financially vulnerable. In 2022 alone, the demand for aid increased by 9%, 2.4 million people were supported, according to the Food Banks network.
All categories nevertheless claim to be affected by the price push. In an Ifop poll from last June, more than half of respondents (53%) said they had given up buying a food product “often” or “from time to time”, including CSP +. A large quarter (28%) even reported skipping a meal regularly.
In fact, between the fourth quarter of 2021 and the first quarter of 2023, the share of disposable income devoted to food fell by 0.3 points to 13.1%. “The prices of other items of expenditure – gas, electricity, fuel, transport – have also risen sharply,” explains Thomas Laurent, head of the quarterly accounts division at INSEE.
The difficult implementation of public policies
The government is monitoring the subject like milk on fire. But the solutions to contain food inflation are not obvious. In the face of inflation, there is “very great heterogeneity” even within income groups, age groups and places of residence, recalls a recent study by the Conseil d’analyse économique (CAE), an organization attached to Matignon. This makes it difficult to implement public policies.
Promised on many occasions, the creation at the national level of a food voucher intended for the most modest has been abandoned and replaced by the launch of an experiment at the local level next year.
In addition, the creation of an anti-inflation basket common to all distributors imagined by the executive has also fizzled. While the prices of certain agricultural raw materials have begun to decline, Bercy is now counting on manufacturers to pass on the decline and benefit the consumer. “From July, on a certain number of references and products, prices will drop,” promised Bruno Le Maire, the Minister of the Economy.
For the moment, only a few manufacturers have played the game. In July, the labels still posted a jump of 12.6% compared to the previous year, according to INSEE. An encouraging sign, however, for the fourth month in a row, the pace of price increases on the shelves has slowed. Small consolation for the consumer.
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