Year-on-year price increases for basic agricultural products slowed to 17% in the European Union (EU) in the first quarter, with Portugal and Spain showing the biggest increases (33%), Eurostat said on Monday.
According to the EU statistics office, between the first quarter of 2022 and the first three months of 2023, the average price of agricultural products in general (production) increased by 17%, lower than in the previous quarter. (26% between Q4 2021 and the same period in 2022) for the same core product basket.
The sharpest growth in the average price of agricultural products was recorded in Portugal and Spain (33% in both countries), with Eurostat highlighting that the drought in the Iberian Peninsula led to a reduction in production, which further contributed to the price increase. .
Lithuania was the only EU country where average prices for agricultural products decreased in the first three months of the year (-2%).
In the commodity basket, the highest increase in prices was recorded for eggs (60% EU average), followed by rice (51%) and pork (49%).
Eurostat warns that the increase in egg prices reflects, on the one hand, the shortage of forage cereals (intended for feeding chickens), and on the other hand, the impact of the bird flu outbreak in Belgium and the Netherlands.
Product prices – a cost borne by farmers – rose 11% for the same basket of inputs in the first quarter of the year compared to last year.
Growth on this metric also slowed down significantly from a record high of 27% recorded in the fourth quarter of 2022.
In this basket, animal feed (16%), seeds and planting material (14%), plant protection products and pesticides (12%) went up in price.
Author: Portuguese
Source: CM Jornal
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