A little flour, sugar, a tablespoon of milk, eggs, butter, a zest of lemon … and a few more cents per kilo. Each year, if the recipe for bredele remains unchanged for generations, this is not the case for its price. At the Strasbourg Christmas market, on the Terrasse des Rohans, several bakeries display these Alsatian Christmas cookies which can be declined in dozens of varieties. From one chalet to another, the price is more or less the same: 4.20 euros for 100 grams of these delicious shortbread cookies.
Yes, but now, the regulars of the Christmas market are starting to cringe at the posted prices, which have been rising steadily in recent years. Materne Hauk, president of the Employers’ Federation of Bakery in the Bas-Rhin, concedes: “The price is still increasing by one euro per kilo per year. But what justifies such an increase?
In the corridors of the federation, we advance several hypotheses: “The prices are rather modeled according to inflation, it is not only linked to the Covid. And everything has increased in a year, whether it is electricity, gas or raw materials. “Another avenue to explain the perplexity in front of the posted prices:” People are used to buying them, they see the difference. But it is a whole which makes that… ”
“Need to make a profit”
Materne Hauk, who also sells bredele on the Christmas market, agrees: “It is mainly linked to the price of raw materials. This Monday morning, the butter was 50 cents per kilo, 10% more compared to the previous year. Even flour, the price of which had not risen in years, increased. “
Manager of his own bakery in Reichstett, about ten kilometers north of Strasbourg, he also puts forward purely economic reasons to defend rising prices. “We are businesses, and we need to make a profit otherwise it is not possible. There is the price of energy, but also the wages to be paid. And given the work provided, it is still artisanal, people are not fooled. So the margin is important. “
Shared consumers
And what do consumers think? Coming from the Molsheim region, about twenty kilometers from Strasbourg, Gérard and Christiane discuss the subject as connoisseurs. “We find bredele very expensive, especially in relation to the ingredients. “Like many Alsatians, who pass on the know-how from generation to generation, the couple found the parade:” We make them ourselves! “However, the fifties want to show solidarity with the bakers:” They have to earn something, so that they can pay for the location of the chalet and recruit staff. “
Further on, Anne-Marie and Augusto came from the Paris region to stock up on Christmas magic and shortbread. “We come back every year, and we don’t feel it’s more expensive! In any case, it didn’t shock us at all, we were more surprised by the layout and the space between the chalets! »The stars in the eyes, it is something that is priceless.