Facing the worst kebab inflation in many years, Germany is discussing a national emergency measure: intervening in its price.

Scholz: “Wherever I go they ask me whether the brakes should be put on the donor price”

Chancellor Olaf Scholz is fed up with his fellow Germans asking him the same questions wherever he goes, especially when he’s talking to young people. What is most surprising is that the eternal topic of conversation over which social democratic leaders are at odds is not housing. Not even war in Ukraine. Not emigration, CO2 or energy. No way. They ask him again and again about its price Donor Kebab. And especially if the executive puts a cap on it to prevent it becoming more expensive after a 75% increase in recent years.

There is already talk of “donnerflation” in Germany.

And the matter is so serious that it has become a state issue.

“I pay eight euros for this Donor,, This is the strange complaint that a young man made to German Chancellor Olaf Scholz last year. His comment may seem like a simple anecdote, but it perfectly summarizes the issue that is roiling national politics: “donorflation.” price of Donor The trend of kebab has increased a lot in the Federal Republic. too much. faster. very fast.

It is enough for Scholz himself to recognize that wherever he goes, he always meets someone who expresses the same concern to him: “If the brakes on the price should not Donor“In Germany. There are people who think so.

75% increase, Statistics show that the cost of eating a kebab in Berlin, Hamburg, Frankfurt or any other German city is significantly higher today than it was a few years ago. There are people who say that the average price of these dishes has increased by almost 75% in just a few years. In July Country devoted a report to the rise in prices of Donor German in which he explained that, by then, their cost had increased from four or five euros to six, seven or ten, as charged in Frankfurt. And all this in just one and a half years. Newspaper Frankfurter Rundschau

He assured that his price in Munich is already 8.53 euros.

There are other references also. recently Guardian Focused on the same incident and talked to salesman Deniz Donors Who works at a newsstand in Berlin. The price of their roast beef sandwich, pita bread, chopped vegetables and sauces has increased significantly in just two years: from 3.9 to seven. And he reassures, “People talk to us about ‘donorflation’ all the time, as if we’re cheating them, but it’s out of our control.”

“Talk to Putin”, The big question is… is Deniz right? How do you explain the huge increase in the price of kebabs? Analysis of the phenomenon of “donerflation” generally points to a set of causes, a cocktail of factors that have caused food prices to skyrocket – some have warned – starting with prices that rose by the hour and more. The hours were “very low” at the expense of low-wage work and low profit margins. One key to this price increase is the war in Ukraine. Indeed, the young man who complained to Scholz in July 2023 also asked him to “talk to Putin” so that kebabs would become cheaper.

“With the war the prices of raw materials skyrocketed, and we have to keep in mind that grills use a lot of gas,” he explains. Country Eberhard Seidel is the author of the book ‘Doner: A Turkish-German Cultural History’. Chefs also deal with rent prices, energy, food, and other factors outside the region that affect their costs, such as increases in the minimum wage.

The “Donnerflation” also falls into a very typical macroeconomic scenario, marked by rising prices: Germany closes 2023 with the second-highest inflation in decades since the years of reunification, and the Statistisches Bundesamt reported a few days ago that inflation was at 2.2%. % rate was predicted. april.

But… is it that serious? That Donor What the skyrocketing price of kebab tells us about the German economy, but doesn’t explain In fact That this issue has become a state matter there. If this happened, it is due to another factor, which is equally relevant: the immense, voracious love of Germans for these snacks of Turkish origin.

The statistics are once again eloquent. Guardian Assured that about 1.3 billion are consumed in the country every year. Donors, In fact, 400,000 people ate it every day in Berlin alone. Other sources speak of 18,000 sales outlets spread across the country, the industry being valued at more than 7,000 million euros and hundreds of tons of kebabs gobbled up every day. After all, these recipes are quick, convenient, delicious, easily affordable and, until recently, a fairly affordable way to satisfy hunger.

as important as housing, “He Donor It is part of the German identity. The reaction to the price increase has been a little dramatic, but if you think about how cheap it was to make a meal with 150 or 200 grams of meat, onions, tomatoes, lettuce, salt and bread, it makes sense,” he notes.

With this starting point, it is not surprising that “Donnerflation” is far from being a real issue or a simple curiosity of the German economy and cuisine. The best evidence comes from the comments of Scholz or Hanna Steinmüller, a member of the Greens, a group which, although it does not characterize its support for meat consumption in Germany, does not hesitate to enter the debate.

“It is now as important a question for young people as where they will go after leaving home,” Steinmüller argued during a speech in parliament earlier this year. “I know this is a question for many people here. It is not an everyday topic and something that can be ridiculed, but as representatives of the electorate we are obliged to highlight these different viewpoints. In the background: what action should be taken in the face of “donorflation”, And if yes then how, debate on this.

From “Donnerflation” to… “Donnerpreisbremse”“. The dispute has reached such political importance that already parties are proposing a way to stop it. And one of the proposals that has been put on the table and generated debate is the “Donnerpreisbremse”, which is the price But there is a limit or brake. Donor Kebab.

“Food must not be allowed to become a luxury,” claims Kathy Gebel, spokeswoman for the leftist party Die Linke. The idea is to move food into a system of boundaries that, today, is no longer strange in housing. References are also made in the training: a maximum price of 4.9 euros per dish, which can drop to 2.9 in the case of young consumers, especially those with low income levels.

Subsidized Kebabs, thinking of keeping Donors Below five euros. However this requires deployment of top level public funds. Newspaper frankfurter rundschau explains that Die Linke proposes a system that subsidizes the price of kebabs with vouchers, an idea that has attracted attention in media inside and outside the country, such as Guardian one of two Wire,

And this is largely the case because of what this mechanism would represent for the treasuries that would have to finance it. The London newspaper says that, if the 1.3 billion kebabs eaten each year in the country are taken as a reference, a program with these characteristics could cost 4 billion euros annually.

Merkel and Kebab, The idea of ​​Die Linke does not convince everyone and there are those who consider it more suitable for “satire parties”. In 2023, when he received a complaint from a young man upset about the price of kebab, who encouraged him to “talk to Putin”, Scholz himself showed that he was not convinced by the idea of ​​imposing a limit on kebab. Donors

: “We live in a market economy, but thanks to the good work of the European Central Bank, young people can expect a decrease in inflation.”

The question remains how the kebab crisis and “donerinflation” will develop. At the moment, people on the network are already demanding the return of Angela Merkel. Reason: With it, its defenders claim, Germany had ” Donor under control”.

Images | Georgetain#5 (Flickr) and Mikkelsöderberg (Flickr)

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