Bread prices rise by almost a fifth in the EU, says Eurostat, as the war in Ukraine rages on

French baker Mickael Reydellet, wearing a protective face mask, poses with freshly baked baguettes at ‘La Parisienne’ bakery in Paris, France, February 17, 2021. REUTERS/Sarah Meyssonnier

September 19 (Reuters) – The price of bread rose by almost a fifth in the European Union in August as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, both major exporters of grain and fertilizers, further disrupted world markets and accelerated headline inflation.

World wheat prices have risen since February after months of war halted grain exports from the Black Sea and curtailed fertilizer shipments as Russian producers lost access to Baltic ports they used to ship ammonia, a key ingredient in nitrile fertilizer. Continue reading

The average price of bread in the EU in August 2022 was 18% higher than a year earlier, data from the bloc’s statistics office showed on Monday, the sharpest rise since December 2017, when Eurostat started compiling the stats.

In August 2021, the average price of bread increased by 3% year-on-year, according to Eurostat.

Hungary and Lithuania recorded the highest annual changes in the average bread price in August, with increases of 66% and 33% respectively.

The countries with the lowest average increases were France with 8% and the Netherlands and Luxembourg with 10% growth each.

Bread prices have risen steadily in the EU this year, up from an average of 8.3% in February, when Russia launched its so-called “special military operation” in Ukraine.

Combined bread and grain prices rose 16.6% in August, the sharpest rise since at least January 1997.

Eurozone inflation hit a record high of 9.1% in August, Eurostat confirmed on Friday, buoyed by soaring energy and food prices. Continue reading

It said 2.25 percentage points of the annual change was due to food, alcohol and tobacco.

Reporting by Diana Mandiá in Gdansk; Edited by Milla Nissi and David Evans

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