Prices of around 400 selected food staples will be reduced by 15% from 1 February in a price fixing deal pushed by the government
Government seals price-fixing deal on 400 food items
Food items of 15 categories will see a minimum reduction of 15% compared to the price level at the end of October 2023.
This development, announced by Prime Minister Robert Abela and Economy Minister Silvio Schembri on Thursday, follows discussions between the government, importers, and major retailers.
Abela said the government wanted to provide price stability and peace of mind for families, while Schembri noted that despite government measures, food inflation continued to rise.
The products included in the price fixing deal are:
corned beef, cornflakes, cream crackers, fresh and frozen minced beef and pork, packed fresh and frozen pork chops, frozen raw chicken legs, frozen raw whole chicken, frozen peas, broccoli and spinach, imported black tea bags, instant coffee including decaff, skipjack tuna in vegetable, soya or sunflower oil, standard low fat and reduced salt vegetable spreads, straight cut frozen friable French fries, UHT skimmed, semi-skimmed and whole fat milk in cartons or bottle, wheat spaghetti and penne packets of all sizes.
The relevant products will be marked with labels, while shops will signal their participation in the scheme using stickers at the entrance.
Shops participating in the price cut scheme and the prices of included food items will be listed on ekonomija.gov.mt from 1 February.
The Malta Chamber hit out at the government’s price-fixing plans last Sunday, and called for a united front in addressing inflation.
On Thursday, Schembri denied that this was price fixing and said, if anything, it was price capping.
