Translated using ChatGPT service.
The Consumer Rights Protection Centre (CRPC) continues to monitor the implementation of the Food Price Memorandum and the content of Low-Price Baskets (LPB) in retail chains across Latvia. Although the Memorandum предусматриes that the basket must include at least one product from each of 10 basic food categories, observations show that retailers rarely ensure full category coverage.
The LPB product categories are: bread, milk, dairy products (cheese and cottage cheese, butter, cream, yogurt, buttermilk), fresh vegetables, fresh fruit, meat (pork, poultry, beef and veal, lamb and goat meat), fresh fish, eggs, flour and other grains, and vegetable oils.
On average only 7 out of 10 categories
CRPC monitoring over a 32-week period shows that, on average, Low-Price Baskets in supermarket chains cover 7 out of the 10 categories. This indicator has remained unchanged over a long period and is not sufficient.
The number of categories covered across different retail chains ranges from 4 to 9, depending on the retailer’s assortment.
CRPC Director Zaiga Liepiņa:
“For the Low-Price Basket to truly serve the people of Latvia, it is essential that it includes at least one product from each of the food categories defined in the Memorandum. Unfortunately, we see that category coverage is still incomplete, limiting consumers’ ability to purchase basic goods at the lowest price in their daily lives.
I call on retailers to ensure full category coverage not only formally by including one product per category, but by offering several. This would allow households to prepare полноценные meals using Low-Price Basket products while reducing expenses.
At the same time, I urge retailers to ensure that Low-Price Basket products are easy to identify in stores and clearly labelled. Only then will consumers be able to quickly navigate the offer and be confident they are choosing the lowest-priced items in each category. The CRPC will continue to monitor the situation to ensure that this instrument works exactly as intended—for the benefit of the population.”
What is most often included?
The most commonly offered products within the Memorandum’s scope are milk and dairy products (most often cottage cheese and yogurt), bread (white bread), and oil (rapeseed oil). These are followed by wheat flour and buckwheat.
These items form the “core” of the Low-Price Basket and are offered most consistently by retailers.
What is most often missing?
The least frequently included items are fish, fruit (berries), and vegetables within the Memorandum’s scope. While the availability of fruits, berries, and vegetables increased in the baskets during their сезон, it is currently less frequent. Eggs are also often missing.
Among the least represented categories are buttermilk, lingonberries/cranberries, and whole grain flour. Lamb has never been included.
CRPC observes that retailers are increasingly adding additional products to Low-Price Baskets that are not listed in the Memorandum. This approach is viewed positively, as it expands consumer choice and allows retailers to respond more flexibly to consumer needs. However, these additional products are not counted in the official compliance data and are not taken into account in assessments.
The CRPC will continue regular and close monitoring of Low-Price Baskets, assessing category coverage, price levels, availability, communication in stores and online, as well as the share of local products.