A new study by Belgian consumer organisation Testaankoop has revealed that typical holiday indulgences like champagne, smoked salmon and oysters have seen minimal, if any, price increases compared to last year.
However, those with a sweet tooth or a penchant for certain beef cuts might find themselves paying considerably more.
Testaankoop, which has tracked the prices of over 3,000 products across major supermarket chains for four years, reported that while inflation has declined for the fifth consecutive month, to 3.64%, it still sits higher than the 2.81% observed in December of last year.
Chocolate Hardest Hit
The study highlights that chocolate products continue to be hit hardest by price hikes.
In the past year, milk chocolate has surged by 35%, dark chocolate by 29%, and chocolate biscuits by 23%.
Coffee lovers will also feel the pinch, with coffee pods up 28% and ground coffee up 19%.
Various beef cuts, including sirloin steak (+31%), steak (+23%), raw beef steak (+20%) and beef stew (+17%), also featured prominently in the top ten price increases.
Looking back almost four years, dark-chocolate prices have soared by 91% since January 2022, milk chocolate by 72%, orange juice by 66%, and olive oil by 65%.
Affordable Holiday Spread
Champagne has seen a modest year-on-year increase of 4.4%, with an average price of around €37 per bottle.
Cava presents a significantly cheaper alternative, averaging €9 per bottle (up 2.6%), while non-alcoholic sparkling wines are up 4.9% on average, though most have not changed in price, costing around €6 per bottle.
Foie gras prices are, on average, 2.7% lower than a year ago. For those who prefer faux gras, it costs roughly a third less than its meat counterpart.
Oysters have largely maintained their prices from last year, with a dozen ranging from €7.49 to €17.
The cheapest North Sea peeled shrimp now costs around €60/kg (+15%), with the average price closer to €80/kg.
Smoked salmon has risen by only about 1%, with supermarkets offering the fish for as low as €25/kg, while the average price hovers around €54/kg.
For dessert, ice-cream cakes are approximately 2.9% more expensive, largely driven by chocolate-flavoured yule logs.
Average Shopping Basket
Over the past three years, the average shopping basket of essential products has increased by 32%, with groceries and dairy products experiencing 36% and 33% price hikes, respectively, since January 2022.
A non-organic own-brand egg, which cost €0.55 in January 2022, now averages €0.73, a 33% increase.
Looking at all store-brand eggs, the average price increase between January 2022 and November 2025 is 41%.
Other significant contributors to inflation in November 2025 include meat (+11%) and groceries (+6%).
Amidst the rising prices, some products have become more affordable for shoppers.
Vegetables (-2%), alcoholic beverages (-0.4%), and product groups like ‘pasta, rice and flour’ (-0.4%) and ‘oil, vinegar and sauces’ (-0.8%) have seen slight price reductions.
Dining and Cooking