As much as 82.6% of Croats believe that products sold in Eastern Europe are of lower quality than those in the western part of the EU.
Selling the same products as in the West, but of much lower quality, is a practise of some multinational companies which has been exposed after many studies conducted in Eastern European countries. After Hungarians and Czechs, the Slovaks have also recently confirmed that nearly half of the products sold in their market are inferior in quality compared to the Austrian market, from soft drinks with artificial and cheap sweeteners to meat and fish products with less amount of meat, reports Večernji List on March 27, 2017.
Given that similar impression exists in Croatia as well, it is not surprising that Croatian retailers are trying to attract consumers, in addition to prices, by offering German, Italian and Swiss products. For example, a laundry detergent being sold in one retail chain in Zagreb is being advertised as having “100% German formula”.
As much as 82.6 percent of Croatian citizens believe that products intended for the eastern European markets are of lower quality than those sold in the shops in western EU member states, while more than 70 percent of people claim that, in the eyes of big corporations in Western Europe, we are still the second-class citizens.
In order to find out whether that is true, Member of European Parliament Biljana Borzan and the Croatian Food Agency are conducting research on the quality of 27 seemingly identical products sold in Croatian and German supermarkets.
As early as this week, samples of Milka chocolate, Nutella spread, Nesquick chocolate flakes, Haribo sweets, Philadelphia cheese spread, Monte dairy dessert, Rio Mare tuna in olive oil, Barilla spaghetti, Monini olive oil and many other products will be bought in Munich and then compared with the same products bought in Croatia. Borzan says that this research will be the only current research in the EU which will also include detergents and hygiene products – Ariel detergent, Silan softener, Domestos cleaner, Nivea shower gel, and Colgate toothpaste.
After experts from the Andrija Štampar Teaching Institute in Zagreb and the Croatian Food Agency buy the selected products in Munich, they will be stored in a specially equipped vehicle to protect perishable products and taken to Zagreb. In Croatia, the same products will be bought between 3 and 7 April.
“The analysis will be performed according to clear quality parameters, such as share of sweeteners, basic raw materials, taste, smell, comparing the declaration and the price. We will get transparent and professional results”, said Borzan.
After the research is concluded, no one will be able to argue it is only the taste of local consumers which is at issue, concluded Borzan.
