Bakery Mamateu in Northern France: "Please Pay at Least 60 Cents"
Some Customers Pay More, Saying "Hope It Helps"
In France, where the cost of living has become expensive, a bakery has appeared that allows customers to pay as much as they want for the nation's staple food, the baguette.
On the 14th (local time), French daily newspapers Le Figaro and Le Parisien introduced a bakery chain called 'Mamatte' located in the Somme and Nord regions of northern France. Maxim Lefebvre, who operates this chain, has allowed customers to set the price of baguettes themselves at three stores for one month starting earlier this month. However, the minimum price was set at 60 cents (about 852 won).
Recently, it is reported that the French are struggling with 'frugal consumption,' even reducing their consumption of home-cooked meal ingredients. According to the French National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies (INSEE), food consumption in June decreased by 10% compared to December 2021. Fran?ois Girolf, an economist at the French Economic Forecasting Institute (OFCE), stated, "This is the first time since INSEE started compiling related statistics in 1980 that household food consumption has decreased."
This is due to soaring prices, with France's monthly consumer price inflation rate remaining between 5% and 6% over the past year. Additionally, France's food price inflation rate in August recorded 11.1% year-on-year, nearly double the overall inflation rate of 5.7%.
Regarding allowing customers to decide the price of baguettes, Lefebvre told Le Parisien, "Baguettes are basic necessities," and "Since these are difficult times for everyone, I wanted to help those who need it most." He explained, "About 20-25% of customers pay the minimum price of 60 cents, and 10-15% pay 80 to 90 cents for their baguettes."
He added, "Most customers pay the original price of 1 euro (about 1,400 won), and some customers pay more than the original price, up to 1.50 euros, hoping that Mamatte's 'event' will continue for more than a month and help those in need."
According to the media, Philippe and Laurence, who left one of the Mamatte stores with baguettes, said, "We paid the usual price," and added, "There are so many people in trouble, so we hope this helps them."
For the French, baguettes are a staple food like rice is for Koreans. In 2018, the French government registered the method and culture of making baguettes as a national intangible cultural heritage. The price is generally around 1 euro. Even this is more than a 70% increase compared to 0.56 euros 30 years ago.
After the rise in raw material costs such as flour, butter, and sugar, baguette prices have also increased. Some bakeries already sell baguettes for 1.30 to 1.40 euros, and in some cases as high as 1.70 euros or even 2 euros.
Meanwhile, in September, the French government applied price caps on retail food items for 5,000 products. Amid steep food inflation, the government had been attempting to limit food prices since early this year, but as companies were passive, they decided to expand the range of applicable items.
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