Despite being settled for several years in Brussels, the thrill of walking into a supermarket on the continent still lingers, mingled with memories of school French trips where a few euros seemed to buy a kingly amount of goodies.
This is of course going back a bit and the currency imbalance has since swung hugely in the favour of the Euro, though the fare available in UK supermarkets is distinctly more expensive and of a lower quality. But for those who haven't grown up with such a stark home/abroad perspective, many still appreciate cross-border shopping – not just for the novelty but bang for buck as well.
For many Belgians, this bargain hunt needn't be a far-away trek; some will even be closer to a supermarket just over the border than one in Belgium. And many have been looking to next-door countries for the best deals. This was increased as canny customers realised they could also fuel up for less in France, potentially offsetting whatever additional mileage they might be clocking up.
Belgian consumer protection organisation Test-Achats has been tracking product inflation, both at home and in neighbouring countries. It confirms the relatively high domestic rate of inflation – on average 20% for food. However, their analysis does qualify this general observation; for instance, prices are often higher in the Netherlands.
When zooming in on 162 key consumer products, it highlighted the savings that can be made by purchasing the own-brand selection offered by many Belgian supermarkets. Given the comparatively high prices shoppers face on international labels sold in Belgium, the best value is often closer than we might think; namely, on the bottom shelf.
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