From our special correspondent in London,
The United Kingdom is sinking into an economic crisis unparalleled for decades. Inflation rose by 10.1% over one year, a G7 record. While in France, the rise in prices is estimated at 6.2% over the same period. A crisis that plunges many Britons into precariousness, with half of the country’s households declaring that they do not have enough to eat.
To measure this inflation, we took our shopping cart to go to the first Tesco Express in London, the local supermarket. And compare prices with our Parisian Carrefour Market. Take out your calculators, here we go.
Major increase in fruits and vegetables
We start with frozen chicken, whose spectacular increase was cited by Emmanuel Macron on France 2. Match rather balanced between the two capitals, since the kilo is at 7.55 euros in Paris, versus 7.86 in London. As long as we are in the frozen section, the kilo of fries to accompany your poultry is 2.25 euros at Carrefour, against 3.82 at Tesco.
Always looking for more protein, we move on to ham. As with chicken, the difference is minimal: 2.4 euros per 125 grams in the Kingdom, versus 2.6 in France. To find significant discrepancies, go to the fruit and vegetable section. The banana, the second most consumed fruit by the French, is at 4.51 euros per kilo in the United Kingdom, against 1.99 in Paris! The kilo of orange is estimated at 3.83 euros with our English friends, against 0.99 in Paris. “Fresh fruit has become almost inaccessible,” confirms the Tesco cashier. Moreover, no one lingers in front of the stands.
Drinks severely impacted too
Same trend in the beverage department. In Paris, 1.25 liters of Coca-Cola costs 1.55 euros. In London, the sugary drink is 2.31 euros. If you want to be healthier and opt for the liter of Tropicana Orange, be prepared to pay 4 euros in London, against 2.05 in Paris. Even the carton of milk does not exceed 90 cents in our Carrefour, against 1.23 at Tesco.
We go to the breakfast section. The packet of Frosties weighs 620 grams in France and costs 3.39 euros. In Her Majesty’s Kingdom, for 510 grams, you pay four euros. The 4 jars of Activia Strawberry cost 1.79 euros in Paris, and 2.67 in London! All for pots of 125 grams in Paris, against 110 grams there. “Desserts, we haven’t given them up for a long time. Too expensive for what it is. It’s less sugar, it’s healthier, I guess, “says a customer. For lovers ofEnglish breakfast, the batch of 6 fresh eggs is estimated at 1.59 euros with us, against 1.45 with them. Slight advantage to England. Curious and bad loser, we wanted to understand the reasons for this defeat: before Brexit, the United Kingdom developed its egg production at high speed, in order to be self-sufficient. Its egg self-sufficiency rate has thus increased from 84% in 2015 to 94% in 2019.
Non-food resists
Surprise in the pasta department: in London, they reach the crazy price of 1.91 euros for 500 grams of penne, versus 0.79 at Carrefour. In April, a study by the English Food Bank already showed that the average price of food increased by 9%, against 45% for pasta. The 250 grams of original Ben’s long grain microwave rice are cheaper there, at 1.25 euros compared to 1.59 here. “Microwave products are THE trend, explains the cashier, because it costs almost nothing in terms of energy to cook. Pasta is not only expensive to buy, but very expensive to boil. »
We finish by taking care of ourselves and our belongings. For 12.59 euros, Ariel provides you with 27 capsules for the washing machine in France, against 34 to 10.43 euros in London. You have to believe that the Briton spends less than the froggie for its appearance since the 250 milliliter L’Oréal shampoo is there at 2.32 euros against 3.65 in France. Proof also that inflation is mainly felt on food products and energy costs in England.
All this gives us a basket of 45.27 euros in Paris, against 54.13 euros in London, a difference of almost 20%. All this while the average monthly salary of the English capital (3,258 euros net) is much lower than that of the French capital (3,920 euros net).