An everyday product sees its price double: food remains significantly more expensive in Belgium than among our neighbors

Some everyday products have also increased… but to a lesser extent.

Food prices in Belgium have increased more than in most of our neighbors over the last three years, said Monday the director of economic studies at the IÉSEG School of Management, Eric Dor, presenting the result of a new note on the inflationary crisis.

The note in question compares the increase in food prices between Belgium and other euro zone countries since October 2021, a little before the start of the inflationary crisis, and October 2024. The average price of food products excluding drinks increased by 27% in Belgium. There are eight eurozone countries where food prices have increased less than in Belgium over these three years, including Luxembourg, 21.4%, France, 22.9%, Italy , 24.3% and the Netherlands, 24.9%.

The increase in prices in Belgium hides a large disparity between products. The largest increase was recorded for olive oil with an increase of 100.6%, followed by potatoes (48.3%) and eggs (42.1%). The lowest was recorded for dried fruits and nuts (7.2%), followed by spirits and liqueurs (7.9%) and beers other than light (10.9%).

For many essential food goods, the increase in prices was higher in Belgium than in most neighboring countries. This is the case for bread (+27.3% in Belgium), poultry (+33.5%), cheeses (+33.4%), whole milk (+30.9%), olive oil and eggs in particular.

Conversely, some products increased less significantly in Belgium: sugar (+35.4%), beef (+19.16%), sauces and condiments (+24%) in particular.

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