Researching the prices of basic items before buying can result in savings of up to 20%. That's what the analysis of the Disque Economia price survey conducted by Plural shows. Prices recorded from February 6 to March 13 show that the average cost of basic basket items in Curitiba saw a slight increase over the period.
The Disque Economia program, which monitors prices at supermarkets in the capital.
Considering 13 traditional basket products — meat, milk, beans, rice, flour, potato, tomato, bread, coffee, banana, sugar, oil or lard, and butter — the average value rose from R$ 158,21 on February 6 to R$ 161,35 on March 13, an increase of approximately 1,98% in the period.
The difference in prices between markets, however, reaches almost R$ 35. Based on these data, Plural created a special calculator that helps you find out at which market your shopping will be cheaper.
Check out our price calculator:
Tomato led the increase
Among the items analyzed, the tomato saw the largest price increase, with a 61% rise in the average price between the two surveys. Among the markets, the price per kilo of long-life tomato ranges from R$ 7,95 at Atacadão to R$ 11,99 at Festval.
Potato, beans, and butter also recorded significant increases, though to a lesser extent.
| Product | Average price | Change |
|---|---|---|
| Tomato | R$ 4,37 → R$ 6,92 | +58,5% |
| Potato | R$ 5,22 → R$ 5,78 | +10,7% |
| Beans | R$ 5,77 → R$ 6,31 | +9,4% |
| Butter | R$ 9,06 → R$ 9,65 | +6,5% |
| Oil/Lard | R$ 8,26 → R$ 8,74 | +5,9% |
On the other hand, some products helped contain the rise in the basket. Sugar had the largest average drop of 8%, followed by bread and milk. At Atacadão, the cheapest 5-kilo bag went from R$ 16,90 to R$ 13,90, a 17% drop.
Across the markets, the cheapest 1-kilo bag of refined sugar ranged from R$ 3,29 at Atacadão to R$ 5,49 at Tissi. For the 5kg bag the variation was even greater: R$ 13,90 at Atacadão and R$ 23,98 at Festval.
| Product | Average price | Change |
|---|---|---|
| Sugar | R$ 11,76 → R$ 10,68 | -9,1% |
| Bread | R$ 9,26 → R$ 8,67 | -6,4% |
| Milk | R$ 6,95 → R$ 6,59 | -5,2% |
| Rice | R$ 14,62 → R$ 14,24 | -2,6% |
Difference between markets exceeds R$ 30
The survey also reveals a large variation among supermarkets. In the most recent collection, on March 13, the establishment with the cheapest basic basket was the Atacadão in Bairro Alto, where the set of products analyzed cost about R$ 132,47.
Other markets showed values close to R$ 150, which indicates that the difference between the cheapest and some of the most expensive can exceed R$ 35 for the same basket of products.
Check the difference by product:
