2023-05-23 18:13:00
The finding is not new, but this time it is a study that confirms it. Shopping in France really costs less than in Belgium: up to 44% in some cases. Many Belgians are already going to French supermarkets.
“For example, that here was 1.10 or 1.15 euros. With us, it’s 3.5 euros”, assures Christine. This resident of La Louvière decided to cross the border to do her shopping. A worthwhile 25 minute drive. “We had 300 euros worth of shopping. A shopping cart like that at home, without looking with a few marks, in my opinion we would have exceeded 450 euros”she believes.
Jacques lives in Erquelinnes. He comes once a week especially to buy water, but also dog food: “This bag costs 24.69 euros here in France and 39 euros in Belgium”. Yvette also shows us some good deals. “A jar of jam, I paid 1 euro for that and with us it’s 3.5 euros”, she assures.
We are a large family and we always watch the prices
In the parking lot of this supermarket in France, there are many Belgians. They are identified by license plates. More than a third of the vehicles belong to Belgians who share the same objective: to save some money in these difficult times.
“Even if in our country, the social system means that wages are indexed, the increase in prices follows the indexation of wages, so it’s a vicious circle”, regrets a consumer. “We are a large family and we always watch the prices. And it’s profitable by coming to France”assures a mother in front of her trunk full of bags.
Large multinationals have an interest in having different prices from country to country
The price differences are significant from one country to another. There is no harmonization in Europe. Multinationals take advantage of this. “Large multinationals have an interest in having different prices from country to country. That is to say that in Belgium we will be more chocolate lovers, so we know that we can sell chocolate more expensive in Belgium than in other neighboring countries for example”explains Pierre-Alexandre Billiet, Managing Director of Gondola.
Belgium penalized by two factors
Belgium is also penalized by two factors: its small size, particularly for international food purchases, and also its complexity. “The different regions, the different governments, the different rules and laws in force in terms of food consumption but also taxes, taxation in general”, lists the administrator.
As a result, Belgians spent 543 million euros in supermarkets abroad last year.
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