Overview
- A high-profile Hart aber fair debate put rising grocery costs and shrinking package sizes on prime-time TV, elevating proposals for a price watchdog and VAT changes on staples.
- Trade group HDE rejected a price authority as state overreach, while politicians and consumer experts split over VAT cuts versus targeted aid for low-income households.
- Food prices are about 37% higher than in 2019, according to analyses cited in coverage, intensifying scrutiny of tactics that keep packages similar while reducing content.
- Verbraucherzentrale Hamburg’s detailed lists name dozens of products with reduced fill weights, and the group has sued Mondelez over Milka bars cut from 100 g to 90 g as prices rose from €1.49 to €1.99.
- Consumer guidance emphasizes checking unit prices and fill weights and notes that private-label alternatives often offer more quantity for less money than comparable brands.