Food prices vs minimum wages: Where in Europe has pay kept up?
Euronews Business compares five years of food price rises and minimum wage changes in 26 European countries to see where workers on the lowest pay can afford more food than they could in 2021.
Food prices have surged across Europe over the past five years, while minimum wages have risen at an even faster pace, according to Euronews Business' analysis of 26 European countries. However, in Malta, minimum wage earners have actually seen a decline in purchasing power for food, having to buy 6% less than five years ago. Spain and France have also experienced a decrease in food affordability for minimum wage workers.
Between August 2021 and August 2026, food and non-alcoholic beverage prices increased by 34% across the EU, with Hungary suffering the highest rise at 57%, followed by Bulgaria (54%) and Romania (53%). Cyprus had the lowest increase at 21%. Across 35 European countries, Switzerland had the smallest increase, at 5%. Turkey, however, saw an unprecedented rise of 752%, mainly due to high inflation and a sharp fall in the lira's value, which made imported goods more expensive.
Despite Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, food prices in the EU had already begun to rise, driven by increased energy, fertiliser, transport costs, and disruptions in agricultural markets. In the EU's largest economies, food prices rose by 25% in France, 30% in Italy, 34% in Germany, and 35% in Spain. However, minimum wage increases in these countries also helped mitigate some of the impact, with Hungary seeing the largest increase at 93%, while Germany, Spain, and France saw increases of 46%, 29%, and 20%, respectively.
Turkey recorded the largest increase among the 26 countries compared, at 823%, but minimum wages only doubled, leaving minimum-wage earners with slightly less purchasing power. Only three countries saw a decrease in purchasing power: Malta (6%), Spain (5%), and France (4%). Conversely, Serbia and Montenegro saw the largest increases, with minimum wage earners able to buy 37% more food in August 2026 than in August 2021.
Croatia, Albania, Romania, Hungary, Bulgaria, and Lithuania also experienced significant increases in purchasing power for minimum-wage earners, while Ireland, Germany, Greece, Belgium, the Netherlands, and Portugal saw increases of more than 10%.
Written by urgent.news from Euronews's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
