The basic food basket currently costs €212.76, an increase of €29.13 (15.87%) over its cost on 23 February, the eve of the start of the armed conflict in Ukraine. In the past nine months, dairy products and meat were the two categories that recorded the largest increases of 20.79% and 19.41%, respectively.

According to the organization, “However, increases were observed in all food categories. In the period analysed, the prices of frozen foods, fruits and vegetables, fish and groceries witnessed an increase of 17.96%, 14.45%, 14.38% and 13.34%, respectively, compared to February.

Between October 16 and 23, the 10 products that experienced the largest price increase were mackerel (24%), frozen peas (18%), roasted ground coffee (13%), sea bass (11%), cereal flakes (9%). , bream and extra virgin olive oil (8%), medallions of port fever and hake (6%), and finally dried garlic (4%).

Between February 23rd and November 2nd, fresh hake (50%), white sugar (49%), tomato pulp (48%), oranges (41%), semi-skimmed milk (37%), turkey slices (33%) ), Maria biscuits and eggs (32%), carrots and whole chicken (both 31%).

The Consumer Protection Association monitors the prices of a basket of 63 basic food products each week, which includes goods such as turkey, chicken, hake, mackerel, onions, potatoes, carrots, bananas, apples, oranges, rice, pasta and sugar. Ham, milk, cheese and butter.

The association explains that this increase is due to the fact that Portugal “relies heavily on foreign markets to guarantee the supply of cereals needed for internal consumption”, which “currently represent only 3.5% of the national agricultural production: mainly maize (56%), wheat (19%) and rice (16%).

“And if in the early 1990s grain self-sufficiency was about 50%, the value currently does not exceed 19.4%, which is one of the lowest percentages in the world, which obliges the country to import about 80% of the grain it consumes,” adds Dicko.

The organization explains that “the Russian invasion of Ukraine, from which a large part of the grain consumed in the European Union and Portugal comes from, and therefore, puts more pressure on a sector grappling with the consequences of the epidemic and drought that has a strong impact on production and stock creation.”

“The reduction in the supply of raw materials and the increase in production costs, that is, the energy required for the production of agro-foods, may therefore be reflected in an increase in prices on international markets, and thus in prices at the consumer,” he affirms.