Bananas also became more expensive last year, does it make sense to wait for an offer? † Cooking & Eating

“On average 1.48 euros per kilo. We looked at the period from weeks 9 to 12 of this year and compared it with the same period last year. There’s a plus in that,” says Serve Muijres of research agency GfK. “What customers spent on bananas has increased by just under 6 percent.”

That is a larger increase than that of all groceries in the total supermarket range, according to Muijres. Because we pay an average of 4.6 percent more for all our groceries at the checkout of the supermarket than last year. “By the way, that higher final amount is not only due to higher prices, but also to what people choose. If many people choose cheaper cheese, the total amount decreases.” GfK analyzes the shopping vouchers of ten large Dutch supermarkets.

The increase that GfK sees in bananas is mainly due to the higher energy and transport costs. Bananas come mainly from South America and bananas come from Asia. “That transport has to be by boat and energy prices have risen enormously.” On the other hand, Muijres also sees another – smaller – effect: you pay a little more for fair trade products. “I see that in my own supermarket.”

The following applies to bananas: actually not, according to the researcher. “For promotions, it is better to go to the A-brands and products such as soft drinks, beer and chips.” Last year there were slightly fewer offers than average. This has to do with the great importance that supermarkets attach to potatoes, vegetables and fruit. This allows supermarkets to distinguish themselves, which does not apply to a jar of peanut butter or a pack of crackers. “That is why the promotional pressure for fruit and vegetables is less high.”

Bananas and apples top the top of the popular fruits. They are therefore frequently bought by Dutch consumers. Because the quality of the bananas does not differ much, according to Muijres, customers often see it as something unbranded. ,,A shopper usually doesn’t feel that way. Is a Chiquita banana better than a Dole? We see it more as a commodity, just like you see with garbage bags. If you, as a supermarket, lower the price of this, it will cost you more than it will bring you to new customers.”

On average, supermarkets sell 22 percent of their range. For bananas this was 15 percent in the period mentioned. ,, For some products you are almost crazy if you buy it for full price, for example shampoo or detergent, because it is always on the promotion somewhere. But on average there is a wider margin on fresh products than on groceries, which is why fresh is so important to supermarkets. Of course there is also extra work involved. There should be no rotten grapes on the bunch.”

When it comes to fruit, it’s hard to compare bananas to apples and pears. Bananas do not contain much vitamin C, but they do contain a lot of dietary fiber, potassium and starch. Banana is the most calorie-rich of the popular fruits in the Netherlands,” a spokesperson for the Nutrition Center answers when asked how you can replace the banana.

“Like any other fruit, bananas are in the Wheel of Five. If you think bananas are too expensive, you can take any other fruit that is cheaper. With fruit, it is important that you vary between types, because there is a big difference in nutrients between different types of fruit.”

There is of course no alternative for specific dishes that you really make with bananas. “For example, banana bread without banana is not banana bread,” said the spokesperson. “It is better to look for a recipe with, for example, apple than to replace the banana with apple in a baking recipe with bananas.”

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