29 June 2022
Go to release: Price Levels of Food, Beverages, and Tobacco 2021: How Ireland Compares
These results are taken from the report on Price Levels of Food, Beverages, and Tobacco 2021: How Ireland Compares, which has been published by the CSO today (29 June 2022). This report provides greater insight into price level comparisons for Ireland in 2021 with other European countries and the EU27 in particular. This analysis is based on statistics published by Eurostat on 21 June 2022 for 36 European countries.
Commenting on the results in the release, Edel Flannery, Senior Statistician in the Prices Division, said: “Looking at how the price levels of Food, Beverages, and Tobacco in Ireland compared with other European countries in 2021, Ireland was the second most expensive country in the Eurozone and third most expensive of the 27 European Union (EU27) countries for food, with prices 17% above the average for the EU27. Of the 36 countries surveyed, food was most expensive in Switzerland at 69% above the EU27 average, and least expensive in Turkey at 37% below the EU27 average.
Looking at specific food categories, we can see that prices for the various types of foods in Ireland were all higher than the EU27 average in 2021, except for Fish, which was 3% lower. Prices for Milk, Cheese & Eggs in Ireland were 25% higher than the EU27 average, while Oils & Fats were 22% higher, and Breads & Cereals were 20% higher.
For Non-Alcoholic Beverages, Ireland was joint with Malta as the most expensive of the Eurozone in 2021, and second most expensive of the EU27 countries, with prices 37% higher than the EU27 average. Norway was the most expensive of the 36 countries for Non-Alcoholic Beverages with prices 55% above the EU27 average, while Turkey was the least expensive with prices 33% below the EU27 average.
For Alcoholic Beverages, Ireland was the second most expensive country in the Eurozone in 2021, with prices just over double the EU27 average. Of the 36 countries surveyed, Iceland had the highest prices of alcohol, at 186% above the EU27 average. Alcoholic Beverages were cheapest in North Macedonia, at 19% below the EU27 average.
For Tobacco, Ireland was the most expensive of the 36 countries surveyed in 2021 with prices 145% higher than the EU27 average. Tobacco prices were lowest in Turkey with prices 74% below the average for the EU27.”
This release focuses on the relative price levels of Food, Beverages & Tobacco in Ireland in 2021, compared with 35 other European countries. The results are extracted from more detailed statistics published by Eurostat on 21 June 2022:
Eurostat: Comparative price levels for food, beverages and tobacco
The information is compiled from data collected as part of the Eurostat-OECD Purchasing Power Parity (PPP) programme, under which price data on Food, Beverages & Tobacco in 2021 was collected by 36 European national statistical offices. Information for Ireland was collected by the Central Statistics Office.
The country groups included in the analysis, in 2021, were:
The Food, Beverages and Tobacco Survey was carried out in 2021 by the national statistical offices in each of the 36 countries. Prices were collected for almost 500 individual items covering the main broad categories including, Bread & Cereals; Meat; Fish; Milk, Cheese & Eggs; Oils & Fats; Fruits, Vegetables & Potatoes; Non-Alcoholic Beverages; Alcoholic Beverages, and Tobacco.
The results of the survey are expressed in Price Level Indices, which provide a comparison of countries' price levels with respect to the EU27 average (100). If the price level index is higher than 100, the country concerned is relatively more expensive compared to the EU27 average, while on the other hand, if the price level index is lower than 100, then the country is less expensive compared to the EU27 average.
For further technical information, see the Background Notes chapter of the release.
Edel Flannery (+353) 21 453 5093 or Patsy King (+353) 21 453 5502
or email ppp@cso.ie
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