While this situation may seem unfavorable for the big brands, it means cheaper prices for many private label products in France. This measure is being introduced in France precisely to support small-scale food producers. [Of course, the French are now scratching their heads as to whether this new law will work as planned. Because if a 10% surcharge is imposed on, say, 1 euro of food and beverage, that price will be 1 euro, 1 euro, when converted to the current exchange rate, will be 28.30K for new food instead of 25.70K, for example, since it applies to all food bought in one big shopping trip then it is not a small amount of money.

However, according to available sources, it is mainly supermarkets and hypermarkets that will be affected by the new law, so prices will not increase in the same way.

The main reason for this measure was that some major supermarket chains offer the most popular brands of food and beverages at prices that are practically the same as their purchase cost. The reason for offering selected products at such low prices is, of course, the competition for each customer. Thanks to customers benefiting from these various discount promotions, the chain stores are able to generate high sales and thus profits. However, small and medium-sized stores cannot compete with such small margins, so the French government has come up with mandatory margins.

However, France is not alone in addressing this issue. Such discussions are currently underway in the Czech Republic, where the Ministry of Agriculture and the Federation of Commerce and Tourism are negotiating and trying to reach a consensus. Of course, the Federation of Commerce is trying to avoid any kind of impositions or restrictions, as it believes that such measures would only increase overall prices and reduce customers\’ choice of products.

Some experts even believe that pressure by individual governments on manufacturers to establish protectionist measures is proof that manufacturers cannot compete with open European competition.