French supermarkets begin drive to keep prices down on selected range

CARREFOUR, INTERMARCHÉ AND AUCHAN ARE AMONG THE STORES TRYING TO HELP CONSUMERS WITH THE IMPACT OF RISING FOOD PRICES A three-month initiative to ease the impact of rising food prices has

begun in French supermarkets. From March 15 to June 15, prices on a range of items will be kept as low as possible. In February, it emerged food prices had risen 14.8% in just a year. The

inflation pushed the French government to strike a deal with supermarkets called the “anti-inflation quarter” (_trimestre anti-inflation_). Paris had wanted to introduce a so-called

“anti-inflation basket”, which would have seen prices on a fixed range of products kept as low as possible. But supermarkets rejected this. Instead, they will keep prices down on a range of

items of their choosing. Most of the large supermarkets in France have signed up, including Carrefour, Intermarché, the U brand, Casino, Aldi, Auchan, Cora and Lidl. However, the E.Leclerc

brand refused to take part. READ MORE: MAJOR FRENCH SUPERMARKETS AGREE TO KEEP ESSENTIAL FOOD PRICES DOWN Items covered by the anti-inflation measure will be designated with an official red,

white and blue logo of a shopping trolley with the words _trimestre anti-inflation_ around it. > 🔴 Document @BFMTV : le logo « trimestre anti-inflation » qui > fera son apparition 

dans les prochains jours dans les rayons des > supermarchés pendant 100 jours. pic.twitter.com/A0fvVUksfq > — Léopold Audebert (@LeopoldAudebert) March 6, 2023 PRICES OF SELECTED ITEMS

ARE NOT NECESSARILY CHEAP OR HEALTHY Olivier Andrault, from French consumer choice magazine UFC - _Que Choisir_, said that there is no guarantee the prices of these items will not increase

over the three months. This is because shops have said they will reduce their profit margins on the items chosen, not freeze prices. Consumers have also noticed that the items selected are

not necessarily the healthiest, with many having the worst nutritional ranking. READ MORE: FRENCH SUPERMARKETS UNDER FIRE FOR CUTTING PRICES ON ‘UNHEALTHY’ ITEMS France’s Economy Minister

Bruno Le Maire has also announced that households with the lowest incomes will get a _chèque alimentaire_ (a food cheque). Mr Le Maire said at the beginning of March that the measure will be

trialled in the next few months and will likely be carried out on a departmental level. No more details have yet to be confirmed. > Bruno Le Maire: "Il y aura bien un chèque 

alimentaire pour les plus > modestes, sur une base locale" pic.twitter.com/6XywaqJ5sF > — BFMTV (@BFMTV) March 6, 2023 RELATED ARTICLES FRENCH SUPERMARKETS CAN SHOW OFF THEIR

RECORD ON CUTTING FOOD WASTE THIRD FRENCH SUPERMARKET TO LAUNCH BASKET OF CHEAPER EVERYDAY GOODS