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With consumers being able to compare prices online and to choose where to buy from through online orders and deliveries, price has become an even more important deal-breaker than before. The need to keep production cost low drives many new developments in the food industry, like the research for cheaper substitutes for expensive or scarce ingredients, or those, with fluctutating availability.

The covid-19 pandemic and the Ukrain war have driven up the cost of living considerably in almost every country worldwide with inflation rates higher than interest rates, which means that the purchasing power of money is decreasing faster than it is being earned, and savings held in cash becoming worth less over time. Especially in low-income countries and low-income households consumers painfully feel the impact of this development and are forced to make very careful purchase decisions. Even prices at discounters have increased and people are more and more looking for special offers to make ends meet. At the same time production costs have gone up drastically for many producers, driving prices rather up than down. This development is likely to impact decision making in the food industry in the coming years and should be taken into account when planning a new business.

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