Easter chocolate prices soar despite plummeting cocoa costs
The relentless rise in prices of popular brand-name chocolate Easter bunnies—despite falling cocoa costs and no justifiable reason—can only be described as outright price-gouging by manufacturers, Esra Limbacher, deputy leader of the SPD parliamentary group, told the Rheinische Post (Wednesday edition).
Limbacher claimed that major corporations are charging up to 22 percent more for their Easter chocolate products this year. "Even though the price of cocoa beans has halved over the past two years," she said. "We have to assume that out of €8.99 for a 200-gram bunny, more than four euros end up as pure profit for the manufacturer."
Under the guise of global crises, she argued, "a beloved gift for children is increasingly turning into a question of affordability." This, she said, is precisely why the food industry needs a price-monitoring body, as outlined in the coalition agreement. Greater transparency would empower consumers to "shop more consciously—and perhaps leave the odd overpriced product on the shelf."
