Frangipane, apple, strawberry, pistachio… Whatever the flavor, the galette des rois makes (almost) everyone agree every year. Traditionally consumed for Epiphany, on January 6, it is sold throughout the month, sometimes even into February. A godsend for bakeries: “There are 32,000 artisan bakers and pastry chefs in France, who make an average of 800 galettes each year,” estimates Dominique Anract, president of the French National Bakery-Pastisserie Confederation (CNBPF).
A prosperous month then, since according to an IFOP* study, 94% of French people say they consume galette des rois and almost 1 in 2 French people say they buy it at a bakery.
A pleasure that comes at a cost since, as Dominique Anract reminds us, “there are only noble products on the cake”. Between the avian flu that brings egg production to the brink of scarcity, sugar affected by the increase in the price of biofuels and butter that had experienced a record rise last year… All raw materials have seen their cost increase. It only remains to add the energy crisis and double-digit inflation to obtain a more expensive galette des rois than last year.
“The goal is to sell”
Bakers and confectioners should increase their prices between 3 and 5%, says the president of the CNBPF, “although bakers are struggling to raise their prices.” This is the case of Sahad Zerzour, from the Mozart bakery in the 15th arrondissement of Paris. “I’m not going to raise the price of the galettes des rois,” he announces. Aware of the drop in the purchasing power of his customers, the baker had to arbitrate: “it’s up to us to know if we prefer to sell with a reduced margin or not at all.” He decided: “the goal is to sell.”
In Fabrègues, a small town in Occitania, the observation is the same. For Jérôme Michaux, owner of Boulangerie Le Fournil, the last few years have been difficult: “I had no choice but to increase the price of products twice in two years,” he testifies. So, this year, there is no question of increasing the price of the galette des rois, this tradition so dear to the French: “I will take my margin to avoid customer mess”, announces the commercial manager.
Large stores increase their prices
Because Jérôme Michaux’s biggest competitors are not the other bakeries in town, but the supermarkets that have made the galette a loss leader. While in bakeries the price of a galette can reach 20 euros, the same is not the case in the bakery department of large distribution chains. “Supermarkets start sending empanadas in October, November,” he laments. And above all, they offer them at unbeatable prices, like this promotion from the Super U brand: 3.50 euros for a frangipani pancake in six parts until December 31.
However, if some bakers seem intent on cutting their margins and not raising prices, supermarkets will raise prices this year. With the exception of the Intermarché brand, which has lowered its price and aligned itself with its competitors, all supermarkets have increased the sale price of pancakes, as evidenced by the statements we have made. At Auchan, the 6/8 slice cake that sold for less than 7 euros last year is now close to 8 euros (+15%). Same observation in Carrefour that increased the price of its 6-piece cake by more than 50 cents (+8%). At Géant Casino, the 6-slice galette des rois will now be sold at a price of 10 euros, compared to less than 7 euros last year (+45%).
And if you are a fan of the homemade pancake, then also expect an increase in the account. INSEE points out that between November 2021 and November 2022, the price of butter increased by almost 20%, that of eggs by more than 16% and that of flour by 26%.
*Sample of 1003 people, representative of the French population aged 18 and over. The representativeness of the sample was ensured by the quota method (sex, age, profession of the respondent) after stratification by region and agglomeration category. Interviews were conducted using a self-administered online questionnaire (CAWI – Computer Assisted Web Interviewing) from January 2 to 3, 2018.
Source: BFM TV
