Easter news for those with a sweet tooth - many chocolate eggs are smaller and more expensive this year. Not only in Lithuania.
100 grams - 6 euros, more or less for chocolate eggs, it's up to the sweet tooth.
"We can definitely say that they are buying less," said Erika Jablonskė, co-founder of AJ chocolate.
Confectioners boasted that they had only raised egg prices three times in twenty years. One of them, as if on purpose, this year.
"We sell in kilograms, weighed. Since last year, we have raised the price by only 10 euros per kilogram", said E. Jablonskė.
Easter eggs are becoming a luxury item not only in Lithuania. A master chocolatier in the United Kingdom complained that the price of cocoa, the main ingredient of chocolate, has risen.
"Our supply of cocoa has dropped by a third, which means the price of chocolate eggs has doubled," said master chocolatier Paul Hum.
Cocoa supply is shrinking due to climate change. Droughts have decimated cocoa trees in West Africa, Ivory Coast and Ghana.
"If pesticides are not sprayed quickly and the disease attacks the fields, everything can be lost." When the cocoa trees turn black, the pods lose weight and rot before they are picked," explained cocoa farmer Olivier Gnakomene.
The harvest is low, so the price of raw materials is rising. Cocoa bean prices hit an all-time high on the stock market this week. They were even more expensive than copper, which is used to measure the state of the economy.
"The price of imports increased by approximately 75 percent during the year. It is obvious that the price will increase on the stock exchange in the coming months", claimed economist Tadas Povilauskas.
The United Kingdom research center announces that chocolate eggs this year will be 50% more expensive than last year. In Lithuania, the entire burden has not yet been transferred to the buyers.
"Let's look at two years, chocolate products have become more expensive by almost a third," said T. Povilauskas.
Not all trade networks have had time to react. Vienur Easter sweets 8 percent. more expensive than last year. Others will announce the unpleasant news to buyers already after the holidays.
"The cheapest chocolate egg is 79 euro cents. Up to 13 euros for that big 220-gram Kinder chocolate egg," said Maxima representative Raminta Gecevičiūtė.
"Last year it cost the same, this year we haven't raised the prices yet. Usually, manufacturers raise our prices from February to May, so we are in the repricing process," said Guoda Azguridienė, Assorti's range manager.
Generally, when the price jumps, consumption also falls. However, merchants and economists said that Lithuanians do not break traditions. Easter baskets will contain both real daisies and chocolate ones.
"That consumption still remains similar to before," emphasized the economist.
"We notice that this year, compared to last year, we sold 115% more chocolate eggs. more", said E. Jablonskė.
Confectioners said that Easter sweets are popular not only at home, Lithuanians also send them abroad as souvenirs.
"And to America and to Norway. We have customers who take care a month in advance, put together kits to pamper their loved ones, whom they cannot visit during the holidays," said E. Jablonskė.
According to T. Povilauskas, the cocoa harvest will have long-term consequences for the international chocolate market. So the prices of chocolate eggs will remain high next year as well.
