Price Levels of Food, Beverages, and Tobacco 2021: How Ireland Compares

2021 Price Level Indices for Selected Categories (EU27=100)

This release focuses on the relative price levels of Food, Beverages & Tobacco in Ireland in 2021, compared with 35 other European countries. The results are extracted from more detailed statistics published by Eurostat on 21 June 2022:

• Eurostat: Comparative price levels for Food, Beverages & Tobacco

The information is compiled from data collected as part of the Eurostat-OECD Purchasing Power Parity (PPP) programme, under which price data on Food, Beverages & Tobacco in 2021 was collected by 36 European national statistical offices. Information for Ireland was collected by the Central Statistics Office.

The countries included in the analysis, in 2021, were:

- the 27 Member States of the European Union (EU)
- the three European Free Trade Association (EFTA) countries (Iceland, Norway, and Switzerland)
- the five candidate countries (Albania, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia, and Turkey) and
- potential candidate country (Bosnia and Herzegovina).

In the 2021 Food, Beverages & Tobacco survey, prices were collected for almost 500 individual items covering the main broad categories including: Bread & Cereals; Meat; Fish; Milk, Cheese & Eggs; Oils & Fats; Fruits, Vegetables & Potatoes; Non-Alcoholic Beverages; Alcoholic Beverages and Tobacco.

The results of the survey are expressed in Price Level Indices, which provide a comparison of countries' price levels with respect to the EU27 average (100). If the price level index is higher than 100, the country concerned is relatively more expensive compared to the EU27 average, while on the other hand, if the price level index is lower than 100, then the country is less expensive compared to the EU27 average. See Background Notes for further details.

Table 1.1 summarises the main results with a particular focus on how Irish price levels compare with the other countries. Of the 36 countries, Ireland was 6th most expensive for Food. When we look at the results in more detail below we will see that Ireland’s position varied from being the 18th most expensive for Fish to being the most expensive for Tobacco. Of the 19 Eurozone countries, Ireland was 2nd most expensive for Food, behind Luxembourg.

For Non-Alcoholic Beverages, a category including minerals, water, tea & coffee, Ireland and Malta were joint 4th most expensive of the 36 countries and joint 2nd most expensive of the European Union countries. Ireland and Malta had the highest level of Non-Alcoholic Beverage prices in the Eurozone.

Of the European Union countries Ireland was the 2nd most expensive for Alcoholic Beverages and most expensive for Tobacco. Of the 36 countries Ireland was the 4th most expensive for Alcohol and the most expensive for Tobacco.