Mercadona faces pressure over its ready-made meals as Spain’s bars demand new rules
If you grab a ready-made lunch from Mercadona and eat it in the supermarket, you could be at the centre […]
The hospitality industry in Spain, represented by Hostelería de España, is advocating for new rules that would apply the same regulations and costs to supermarkets serving food and drink for customers to consume on their premises as they do to traditional bars and restaurants. The proposal, included in a list of 30 requests sent to political parties, argues that supermarkets' expansion of ready-to-eat food services is blurring the lines between traditional hospitality establishments and supermarkets, giving the latter an advantage.
Hostelería de España, which represents around 320,000 establishments across Spain, believes this creates an uneven playing field, particularly for independent businesses. They propose that businesses offering similar services should face equivalent tax, health, labor, and licensing obligations, without specifying a new tax rate for supermarkets.
The issue is one of 30 proposals the association has submitted ahead of the upcoming general election. Other demands include protecting the reduced VAT rate for hospitality services and easing the cost of hiring extra staff.
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