Fact: Food price increases
Food prices started to rise in 2021, but the really big increases started in the spring of 2022.
The Food Price Check has compared ordinary prices for common midsummer goods in 2021, 2022 and 2023.
A box of midsummer food for ten people cost around SEK 1,350 in 2021, SEK 1,490 a year ago and just over SEK 1,650 this year.
Matpriskollen is a company that runs an app for consumers and collects food prices from the various chains. Consumers can use the app for free to compare prices and offers. The company is independent and finances its operations by selling data on prices and campaigns as analysis data.
Source: Matpriskollen
At midsummer we buy roughly the same things – herring, salmon, eggs, chives and sour cream are usually on every midsummer buffet. Usually not very expensive items.
Although the last two years have not been as usual. Food prices have skyrocketed and when the independent site Matpriskollen collects a food bag with goods for a midsummer party for about ten people and compares the cost with 2021, it becomes clear how big the price increase is.
The whole picture
— If you only look at one year, you don’t get the whole picture. It is about between 18 and 20 percent price increases, says Ulf Mazur.
Cost of a box of midsummer food for ten people.
Midsummer food must stand as a symbol of the price gallop that we experienced.
— This says something about the price increases that have taken place.
A box with 20 different items that we usually buy for the midsummer party cost SEK 1,350 in 2021. The same box now goes for over SEK 1,650.
The price of salmon has increased very much, some varieties over 40 percent.
Herring, which the Swede sees as a must on the midsummer table, has increased by 25 percent compared to 2021.
Shrinkflation
Some typical midsummer products, such as strawberries and new potatoes, can vary greatly in price, explains Ulf Mazur. There are also often extra prices to attract.
But the ice cream for the strawberries has become considerably more expensive. Some producers have reduced the packaging, so-called “shrink inflation”, while others have significantly increased the price. There are ice cream packages that have increased in price by 34 percent compared to two years ago.
— But we now see that the price increases have stopped. Some goods, such as chicken, which we eat a lot of, have even become cheaper, says Ulf Mazur.