Eurostat: EU bread prices up 18% over the year

According to Eurostat, the average EU bread price in August 2022 was 18% higher than a year earlier – the highest increase since December 2017, when Eurostat began compiling statistics.

Hungary and Lithuania saw highest annual changes in average bread price in August, with increases of 66% and 33% respectively.

The countries with lowest average increases were France at 8%, and the Netherlands and Luxembourg which recorded a 10% rise each.

Combined prices of bread and cereals increased by 16.6% in August, their highest rise since at least January 1997.

Global wheat prices surged after Black Sea grain exports were halted for several months and Russian fertiliser shipments were restricted.

Euro zone inflation hit a record high of 9.1% in August due to higher energy and food prices. Eurostat said 2.25 percentage points of the year-on-year change came from food, alcohol and tobacco.