Consumer advocates are raising concerns that policymakers are insufficiently addressing the everyday struggles faced by citizens. Ramona Pop, Director of the Federation of German Consumer Organizations (VZBV), voiced these anxieties in a recent interview, highlighting a perception among the public that political focus has drifted away from pressing domestic issues.
Pop attributed this disconnect, in part, to the prominence of major international crises, which she believes have overshadowed the concerns of ordinary people. She specifically criticized the government’s failure to deliver on promises of relief from electricity taxes.
Furthermore, Pop called for a more robust response to rising food prices, which she noted have increased by more than a third since 2020. She suggested measures such as mandatory labeling of misleading packaging (“shrinkflation”) and the establishment of a price monitoring agency, similar to that already in place in France, to investigate the distribution of profits within the food industry.
“An increasing number of people are resorting to overdrafts to cover their living expenses. This situation is untenable” Pop stated, underscoring the urgency of addressing the financial strain on households.
