Ljubljana - Eurospin had the cheapest and Tuš the most expensive basket of basic food products among the major retail chains in Slovenia, but Eurospin's basket price beat only one grocer in Austria and one in Italy, show the results of a food price census carried out in mid September in Slovenia, Croatia, Austria and Italy.

The international census, the first of three planned as part of the government's price monitoring project whose website was launched today, also shows that the basket in Slovenia would be the cheapest among the four counties were consumers to buy each of the products in the respective store where their price is lowest.

The basket includes a kilo or a litre respectively of plain wheat flour, white bread, pasta, milk, liquid yoghurt, eggs, apples, potatoes, sunflower oil and white sugar, as well as 300 grams of cheese, 250 grams of butter and half a kilo of beef and pork steaks and chicken fillets.

Such a purchase cost EUR 47.38 in Eurospin in Ljubljana on 13 September, in Lidl it cost EUR 48.25, in Spar EUR 48.53, in Hofer EUR 48.88, in Mercator it was EUR 49.67, and in Tuš EUR 58.23.

In the price census in the three neighbouring countries, a basket of these products was the cheapest in Lidl in Croatia, where it cost EUR 32.44.

This was followed by Interspar in Croatia (EUR 37.93), Konzum in Croatia (EUR 39.08), Lidl in Italy (EUR 41.69), Lidl in Austria (EUR 42.91), Eurospar in Italy (EUR 43.57), Eurospar in Austria (EUR 44.85), Conad in Italy (EUR 47.89) and Billa in Austria (EUR 54.28).

If one were to buy each food item from the retailer where it is cheapest, one would spend EUR 28 in Slovenia, EUR 31.51 in Croatia, EUR 34.63 in Italy and EUR 37.99 in Austria.

Meat was the most expensive of the 15 basic food groups in the basket. All three types of meat considered were the most expensive in Slovenia compared to those across the border.

Apples were cheaper in Italy and Croatia, potatoes and sunflower oil were cheaper in Croatia, and pasta, cheese and sugar were cheaper in Italy. Eggs, yoghurt, bread, milk and flour were cheaper in Slovenia than in the neighbouring countries.

In Slovenia, Spar provided the best range of products in the September census. It had 81 products in 15 selected food categories. Mercator followed with 69 products, followed by Tuš with 53, Lidl and Hofer with 27 each and Eurospin with 22.

The census project, meant to combat food price hikes, will run until the end of March 2023, with prices in Slovenia compared and published every two weeks.

In neighbouring countries, where prices are analysed at retailers within 50 kilometres of the border with Slovenia, two more surveys are to follow.