For the prices in “Christmas basket” in the supermarkets, for the festive opening hours of the stores which starts from today, but also the “Santa’s Basket”, which starts from December 18, spoke to ERT, Sotiris Anagnostopoulos, General Secretary of Trade and Protection of Consumer.
The General Secretary of Trade and Consumer Protection pointed out that “we have holidays ahead of us and we will all spend, buy for our family, for our loved ones and in this context we will have two seasonal baskets. One is the Christmas Basket which is about the basic consumer products that consumers will buy for the Christmas table. We are talking about the lamb, the goat, the turkey that comes to be added to the already existing ones in the Household Basket, pork, beef and chicken. So, we have the full range of meats available on the market, as well as sweets, buns, king cake and chocolate, which has seen some appreciation in recent times due to the increased international price of cocoa, but in in any case, the consumers and we, and obviously those responsible in the businesses, will try, that is to say, everyone will try to have the best possible prices, the best that exist on the market, for the sake of the vulnerable consumers, the consumers who have a harder time than others, to find jobs and opportunities in order to have decent celebrations compared to last year”.
Regarding now whether there are differences in the “Christmas Basket” in products compared to last year, Mr. Anagnostopoulos underlined the following “The good thing is that the prices are much better this year than the first picture we have from the announcement we had yesterday and through e-Consumer on the digital platforms that all consumers can participate in in order to see and compare prices between products. So the picture we have compared to last year is that the products are at approximately the same price and in some cases even cheaper. Especially with regard to turkey, there we have greater reductions and this is something that is positive (…). Regarding the melomakaroni and kourabiedes, they are not included in the basket, precisely because the supermarkets do not have a comparative advantage in terms of prices and quality. Here the advantage is probably in the confectioneries and bakeries, so for this reason it is not recommended within the “Christmas Basket” itself, but we urge consumers to trust local entrepreneurs in local businesses that deal with this particular art, confectionery, that can offer very good quality and at very good prices. We also urge consumers to do careful market research so as to avoid excessive prices that can often be found in the market, but with careful market research we can find very good prices and very good qualities.”
The Santa’s Basket with toys in children’s chains starts from December 18
Mr. Sotiris Anagnostopoulos, at the same time, added that “We will have 10 categories, which include almost everything a young or older consumer who would like to buy a toy, either for himself or for a loved one, such as small children, needs . This possibility will be available from December 18 and will last until and after St. John’s Day, so everyone will be able to give a gift to a small child, whether it is their own child, nephew or godchild, at affordable prices. prices. Because, you know, usually this good can be said to be a luxury, it’s not a basic good for living, but especially during the holiday season it’s a very basic good. There is no one who will not buy a toy for their children. Obviously we all understand this, so it is very important that consumers are able to compare and again be offered the best possible value for money in order to make purchases that are beneficial, economical and will meet their needs ».