The doubt had come to us, and not today. Every time we go shopping at the supermarket, we realize how much food prices have risen. We are not just talking about a few cents more, but about increases that really weigh on the wallets of Italian families. And now, finally, the Competition and Market Authority (AGCM) has decided to see clearly by launching a fact-finding investigation into the role of large-scale organized distribution in the agri-food supply chain.
The ISTAT data are unequivocal and make us think. Between October 2021 and October 2025, food prices increased by 24.9%, 8 percentage points more than general inflation which stopped at 17.3%. A gap that widened especially in the two-year period 2022-2023, after the pandemic, when we witnessed a significantly more marked surge in costs at the supermarket compared to other sectors.
As late as October 2025, while general inflation stood at 1.2%, food inflation was almost double that, at 2.3%. In short, shopping continues to cost far too much.
But where do these increases end?
This is the crucial question that the Antitrust intends to investigate. Because while we consumers pay more and more, on the other hand agricultural producers complain about compressed margins and inadequate growth in their earnings.
The problem could lie right in the middle of the supply chain, where the large organized distribution chains exercise very strong bargaining power. On the one hand there are thousands of small, fragmented agricultural producers with little negotiating power, on the other an increasingly concentrated distribution sector which could unilaterally impose the economic conditions of supply, retaining higher profit margins.
The investigation
The Antitrust writes:
The Authority’s activity will focus in particular on the role played by distribution chains in the distribution of added value along the agri-food chain and in the formation of final prices.
The investigation, which will conclude by December 2026, will focus on several critical aspects of the relationship between large-scale retail trade and suppliers:
The Authority has opened a public consultation: until 31 January 2026, producers, consumer associations and anyone interested can send contributions and reports to IC58@agcm.it.
It is an important opportunity to highlight all the critical issues of a system that probably needs to be rebalanced a little. Because shopping cannot be a luxury.
