The fruit and vegetable category saw several price increases in the first quarter of the year, driven by a series of storms in Portugal and the conflict in the Middle East, which increased production costs. According to data from Deco, prices for items such as courgettes, cabbage, red potatoes, tomatoes, garlic, carrots, oranges, and Gala apples have risen since January 7th. Conversely, broccoli, cauliflower, onions, bananas, and Golden apples saw price decreases, although some of these items experienced renewed volatility in late February and March. These figures are based on Deco's monitoring of online supermarket prices, with the total cost of a food basket reaching a high of 254.32 euros.
Storms and war cause fruit and vegetable prices to soar
Sunday, 22 March 2026RSS
Context & Explainers
Inflation measures how much general prices rise over time, usually reported year‑on‑year to compare a month with the same month a year earlier. Portugal’s National Institute of Statistics (INE) estimated January inflation at 1.9% year‑on‑year, down 0.3 percentage points from December, which affects rents, wages and everyday purchasing power for residents.
