In the past year, food prices have risen by nearly 21 percent, but the CEO of Swedish Groceries, Karin Brynell, believes that the food companies have not passed on the costs to customers.
After the recent reports about rising food prices, Finance Minister Elisabeth Svantesson (M) called the big food companies to her to get answers as to why prices have increased so much.
“Lots of campaigning”
Shortly afterwards, both Ica and Coop announced that they were lowering their prices. In response to the question as to why this was only done after the meeting with the Minister of Finance, Karin Brynell replies:
– You have always made a lot of campaign appearances. I also think it should be seen as what consumers are looking for.
At the beginning of the year, however, the situation looked different, when the prices at the food retailers were raised instead.
– We have cost increases and this is reflected in the store price, but it is still the case that the increases that were made have been lower than the cost increases. Now we once again have competition for a consumer with significantly less money, says Karina Brynell.
Must be ok to make money
She dismisses that food prices were now lowered after pressure from outside.
– I can understand that there are those who drew these conclusions and I think that it is probably taking too big a leap. Within Ica, there are individual traders who compete with each other, she says and continues:
– After all, in a market economy it must be okay for companies to make money, if they make two kroner and now it has gone down to 1.5 or one kroner, then you have been involved and taken responsibility, but no consumer has been happier for it as it is still a huge increase from before.
