The potatoes rush – the food half a billion more expensive

Published 13 August 2024 at 13.44

Economics. Food prices in Sweden rose by around half a billion kroner during the month of July – and potatoes were one of the foods that experienced the biggest price increases.

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According to Matpriskollen, which closely monitors price developments in the grocery trade, food-related products have increased by 0.2 percent in the past month. It is the highest increase since February.

Potatoes have been hit particularly hard by price increases. This is mainly due to a poor harvest of winter potatoes in autumn 2023, which led to a shortage of Swedish potatoes and thus higher prices. The fresh potatoes were also sold earlier than usual, which further aggravated the situation. The price of loose potatoes has increased from around SEK 15 to SEK 20-25 per kilo in one year.

– Potatoes are a Swedish staple which means that the meal is not too expensive – but now even that is rushing, says Ulf Mazur , CEO and founder of Matpriskollen, in a press release.

The price increases also affect other foods such as vegetables, fruit and chocolate. For example, the price of Swedish cucumber increased by 8 percent during July, while chocolate prices rose by 1.9 percent during the same period.

Despite these increases, some price declines were also noted, including for fish, where salmon prices fell on average 2 percent. The food price monitor emphasizes the importance of consumers planning their purchases carefully and taking advantage of stores' extra prices to mitigate the financial effects of rising food prices.