The general rate of inflation in Germany is decreasing. But food prices of all things rose faster than ever in March, at an annual rate of 22 percent.
But how have the prices at the discounter Aldi changed within a year? We did the test and bought the same products as a year ago.
The result is surprising: shopping at Aldi was only 19 cents more expensive than a year ago. That corresponds to an increase of less than one percent. However, there were major differences between the individual products.
Overall, inflation in Germany is declining somewhat. In March, inflation fell from 8.7 to 7.4 percent. But that was mainly due to a relaxation in energy prices. On the other hand, food prices rose as fast as ever. According to the Federal Statistical Office, food was 22 percent more expensive in March than a year ago. “For private households, the renewed increase in food prices was particularly important in March,” said Ruth Brand, head of the authority.
What about the prices at the discounter Aldi? We tested that. A year ago we bought a shopping cart with ten products from Aldi for you. That’s why we were now able to compare exactly how prices have changed over the course of a year.
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This is how the prices at Aldi have developed
So this week in April 2023, the new consumer check with the same ten items: Chocolate waffle biscuits from the “Biscotto” brand, salami and pork bratwurst from the Aldi house brand “Meine Metzgerei”, an organic chicken breast fillet and organic Salami from the “Gut Bio” brand as well as two different types of milk (UHT milk and fresh milk) and a piece of butter from “Milsani”. Organic eggs that we bought last year were sold out this time – but we include the current price in our calculations. Add a tin of chopped Kings Crown tomatoes and off to the checkout. However, we were not able to trace the extent to which the individual pack sizes may have changed.
Milk price cracks the one euro mark
Together with the organic eggs we pay 25.36 euros for our purchase this year. That’s just 19 cents, or less than 1 percent, more than a year ago. At that time we paid 25.17 euros for the purchase.
How have the prices for the respective products developed? There were definitely big differences.
The most expensive product, the organic chicken, now costs EUR 8.97, which is 35 cents more than a year ago. That was almost four percent more. The cheapest product, the chopped tomatoes, cost 85 cents. This was 30 cents and thus a strong 54 percent more.
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The “German branded butter” has become significantly cheaper at Aldi. It currently costs EUR 1.49 compared to EUR 2.09 last year. That’s almost 30 percent less.
The opposite is true for milk: the price of fresh and UHT milk has risen by a good 30 percent. We paid 88 cents back then, today it’s 1.15 euros.
Both the bratwurst and the salami are also noticeably cheaper: both have fallen in price by a little more than 20 percent. Now 2.79 euros, then 3.49 euros.
On the other hand, a clear increase can be seen in organic cold cuts: an increase of around 15 percent. Eggs are ten cents or about three percent cheaper.
Our sample makes it clear how much the prices are in motion. Price jumps for individual products of 30 percent in one direction or the other are rather unusual in normal times. The bottom line is that our purchases from Aldi were hardly more expensive than a year ago. This shows how much it is worth keeping an eye on and comparing individual prices. Of course, our small test cannot cover the entire range or a large shopping basket, as is the case with the Federal Statistical Office. We have tried to come close to a cross-section of everyday needs.
