With the announcement of ‘The basket that falls in love’, eroski has broken the unity shown by the main supermarket companies and reinforces, even more, the debate on the determining weight of food in the persistent inflation. A very worrying problem that hits all European countries that, without much success, have tried to intervene in the food chain.
With his initiative, Eroski moves to Spain a measure similar to the one recently agreed by the French government and some large distributors for offer anti-inflation baskets; one last cartridge with which to respond to the uncontrolled rise in prices. A claim loaded with good will, but with doubtful effects, because to the objective factors that support the rise in prices, the cost of raw materials or energy, is added the extraordinary complexity of the food chain, which makes public intervention impossible.
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Therefore, beyond the fact that the administration reduce taxes on basic products, short-term price containment can only come from the efficiency and willingness of those who participate in the convoluted chain, especially the large distributors. A few companies hold a dominant position in retail sales and, in addition, hold decisive positions in production, through their increasingly important White marks.
In this frame, Eroski’s basket has two advantages: breaking the monolithic image of the sector and going beyond the usual discounts and promotions, offering a unique and compact package of products at special prices. In a few weeks, we will have the opportunity to verify the real effect of the initiative, if it affects the pocket of families or if it does not go beyond a brilliant communicative idea. In any case, let’s not expect too much from this or similar baskets that other companies end up proposing. The dynamics of price formation is impossible to redirect in the short term.