Packaged-food firms are running out of room to raise prices
The war in Ukraine is pushing up costs just as shoppers become fed up with inflation
THE MARKET for packaged foods is a competitive one, where price rises by one firm risk pushing shoppers into the arms of rivals. Companies in the industry deal with soaring costs by hedging against spikes in commodity markets using forward contracts, reformulating products so they contain less of the pricier foodstuffs or, failing that, surreptitiously making packages a bit smaller while keeping the ticket price the same.
This article appeared in the Business section of the print edition under the headline “Food fight”
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