“Housewife’s basket” with 50 products will be presented by each supermarket chain – The goal is to keep prices down

In agreement to present each supermarket chain during the month the housewife’s basket, which will include 50 different products in order to fight for the containment of prices, ended up in the meeting held by the political leadership of the Ministry of Development with the representatives of the market operators.

In particular, as announced by the Ministry of Development, the Minister Adonis Georgiadis, in the presence of the Deputy Minister of Development & Investments, Mr. Nikos Papathanasis, the General Secretary of Trade & Consumer Protection, Mr. Sotiris Anagnostopoulos and the Commander of the Interagency Market Control Unit (DIMEA), Mr. Charalambou Melissinos, had a meeting today with representatives of the Business & Retail Association of Greece (SELPE), the Hellenic Confederation of Trade & Entrepreneurship (ESEE), the Consumer Goods Retail Research Institute (IELKA) and large supermarket chains.

The meeting was attended by the Presidents of SELPE, Mr. Antonis Makris, and of ESEE, Mr. Giorgos Karanikas, from the supermarkets Mr. Yannis Masoutis (DIAMANTIS MASOUTIS S.A.), Aristotelis Panteliadis (METRO A.E.V.), Lampros Papakosmas (HELLINIKES UPERAGORES SKLAVENITIS S.A.E.), Nikos Lavidas (AB VASSILOPOULOS) and from IELKA, the President of the Scientific Council, Professor , Mr. Giorgos Doukidis and the General Manager, Mr. Lefteris Kiosses.

After the meeting, the Minister of Development & Investments, Mr. Adonis Georgiadis made the following statement (on camera):

“The Ministry of Development & Investments, trying to deal with the extraordinary conditions that the high inflationary pressures bring to households, once again had a constructive discussion with the entire retail trade sector, super market chains and the rest of the retail trade.

We agreed on the following: Each supermarket chain will present the housewife’s basket in October, which will include 50 different products necessary for the living of a household, in order to give the battle to contain the emis to the maximum extent possible.

At the same time, DIMEA’s controls will continue intensively on the profit margin on the important – as the law says – products for the world’s livelihood in these difficult conditions.

I want to thank all the representatives of the sector for our good cooperation so far and above all because they understand that here is a battle that concerns every Greek man and woman. And it is a battle that did come from abroad, from the war and from the energy crisis, but it is a battle that we must fight and win.

We have also thoroughly examined the issue of product adequacy, an issue that concerns several European countries under the current circumstances, and I want to thank them because the Greek market, as during the Covid period, managed to stand out and not have issues of shortages , will manage even now to have complete product sufficiency despite very large international pressures on various types of products.

This is a result of the very good work they did in the previous months to be able to have sufficient supplies that create a safety net for the Greek consumer. And I really want to thank and congratulate them for that.

The Government will remain close to the sector to solve institutional problems as well as problems that arise along the way, so that we can continue this good cooperation, but we will also monitor with the utmost possible rigor the implementation of these decisions.”

QUESTIONS

Journalist: A clarifying question. When you say 50 products, what about the rest?

Adonis Georgiades:

“Checks continue as usual. But in addition to the normal checks we carry out, each chain will also present its own basket of 50 products, giving the consumer the opportunity to have very low increases in absolutely necessary products”.

Journalist: Will it see growth or competition?

Adonis Georgiades:

“And the competition will work, you will see, because each chain will make its own package of offers, so we will be able to do the comparison as well.”

Journalist: And today you find that the competition to build that basket is not working as well as you would like?

Adonis Georgiades:

“The opposite. Competition works fine, that’s why, as you saw from the results of the checks I told you before, even though there are thousands of checks we do, the violations that are finally detected are relatively very few, around 6%-7% . So, then, the competition works. We have to find smarter tools in the current emergency conditions.”

Journalist: Of course, the main problem for all of us is energy. Was this discussed? And if it was discussed from what perspective?

Adonis Georgiades:

“Energy was discussed extensively. And with regard to the initiatives we take with large subsidies for energy saving, electricity production, self-consumption and in general, for measures that will help reduce energy costs, but also with regard to the subsidy that the Government gives to electricity”.

Journalist: If there happens to be a holiday, if we reach this point of excess, how will a super market work?

Adonis Georgiades:

“Greece will not have any blackout issue, we don’t even need to discuss it. We are fully prepared for this. We will be one of the lucky European countries, thanks to the good work of the Government, that we will not have such issues”.

Journalist: Did the retail chains agree to freeze prices on these 50 products or to low increases?

Adonis Georgiades:

“We didn’t discuss a freeze at all since the freeze is not in their hands. I have to tell you that next week we will have a meeting here with the whole industry to see how the industry can also contribute to contain the price increases, because the supermarket is one side of the boat and there is the other side of the boat . Well, this effort will continue on the other side as well.

But, I believe that we have all understood the magnitude of the necessity to keep the basic products for the living of the Greek citizens at the lowest possible level”.

Journalist: Someone will say you made an “informal gentlemen’s agreement”. Something that is forbidden.

Adonis Georgiades:

“It’s not an ‘informal gentlemen’s agreement’ at all and it’s nothing that’s prohibited and that’s why each chain will make its own policy. So, we are not infringing competition law at all, which we would never do.

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