The aisles of supermarkets are filled with lights, turrones and festive aromas, but also with prices that weigh heavily on the pockets of Spaniards every time. Shopping for the Christmas holidays has become a real challenge for many people: the foods that usually make up Christmas meals and scenes arrive at an unstoppable pace and preparing the table requires extra effort for families. Even if general inflation seems more under control than a few years ago, 2025 will be a year marked by the most notable price increase in the last decade for certain foods typical of these holidays.
This is how we reflect on data from the Organization of Consumers and Users (OCU), which in its 2025 price survey shows widespread increases and, above all, historic highs for some traditional products resulting from these closures. The increase in demand at Christmas will coincide with a more adjusted supply, giving rise to a scenario that has a direct impact on household spending.
It is also the year of “expensive” meat, according to the OCU. If traditionally it was fish and a product that many families could not afford to bring to the table at Christmas, on this occasion it was the round of beef, lamb, peas or Iberian jam that reached the highest prices of the entire historical series. At the same time, among the fruits that have gained importance in festive menus, the piña and the pomegranate, are also reaching historic heights.
The evolution of prices over the last decade confirms the extent of the increase. Since 2015, cumulative increases have been around or above 100% in foods representative of La Navidad, such as besugo (67.5 euros per kilo), munchies (35.2 euros), angles (1,249 euros per kilo) or cordonero (23.85 euros). These are sustained increases over time, with few adjustments at the base, which ended up consolidating a structural change to the detriment of the navy basket. During this period, only langoustines showed a more contained evolution, being the only one of the products analyzed to become more expensive over a long period.
When it comes to meat, the latest data for the final stretch of 2025 reflects very significant increases compared to the previous year. The tender reaches 21.34 euros per kilo, which represents an increase of 21% compared to 2024. The cord rises to 23.85 euros per kilo, which results in an interannual increase of 9%, consolidating itself as one of the products most penalized by inflation and one of the most demanded during these closings. Pavo records an increase of 10% and reaches 7.21 euros, while Cebo Iberian ham rises to 71.71 euros, with an increase of 12% in just one year.
This behavior is directly linked to the evolution of agricultural supply, even across the barrios. In the case of sheep, production continues to decline, with around 100,000 tonnes of lambs and around 10,000 tonnes of goats, in a context marked by the effects of the health problems which have affected various animal productions in recent months, such as avian flu or controlled swine fever. Although Spain has sufficient production to supply the market throughout the year and even for export, the last months continue to be a favorable period for the entry of foreign products.
In this sense, animals arriving on the market from France and Italy are placed on the market, with weights similar to those from Spain, which are sold refrigerated or sacrificed in national slaughterhouses, especially in the northern region. Alongside them, there is also a supply of larger weight animals imported from countries such as Australia, although their demand is very limited. In the case of vaccine, Spain is currently an importer of certain cuts from countries like Ireland, while in pork it highlights the entries of refrigerated lechones from Central European countries, intended to cover occasional peaks in consumption. The jump is around 9 euros per kilo and the dollar has moved closer to 7 euros during these Christmases, relatively moderate increases, of 30%, over the last decade.
In fruit and vegetables, prices also reflect the pressure of the Christmas period. The price rises to 1.89 euros per kilo in 2025, with a slight increase compared to 2024, but with a cumulative increase of 32% since 2015. Grenada reaches 3.19 euros per kilo after an inter-annual increase of 3%, also consolidating at historic highs. Lombardy, one of the traditional products of these closures, presents a slight adjustment compared to the previous year, although it maintains prices significantly higher than those recorded ten years ago.
Of all the seas
Fish and seafood remain a must on Christmas tables, despite the high prices resulting from the reduction in supply. Spain, although it is a producing country, is also a large importer, given the impossibility of covering domestic demand with sufficient own supply, on the ground in these closures, throughout the year. The overexploitation of caladeros, the deterioration of fishery resources and the increasing difficulties in doing so both in Community waters and in third countries limit the capture of many traditional species.
Throughout the year, but especially at Christmas, the tables of Spanish homes become a veritable collection of origins. Despite the progress made by national aquaculture, both in the production of fish such as lubine or goldfish and in that of molluscs and crustaceans, dependence on the outside remains high. In the case of langostinos and prawns, they highlight imports from countries like Ecuador or North Africa, as well as Turkey or Italy, while prawns arrive from different African countries and also from Argentina.
Products such as centello and sea buoy maintain a limited presence of national origin, notably from the northern coasts and Galicia, although much of the product comes from countries such as Italy, the United Kingdom or Scotland. On the side of national coaches, of course, there is a regression, including those from Iceland. The bogavantes arrive mainly from Canada, although the lobster comes from countries like Cuba or Mauritania and, to a lesser extent, from the Galician coasts. In the case of barnacles, those of national origin, particularly from the north, coexist with others from North Africa, mainly from Morocco.
Lubina costs around 11.75 euros per kilo and is around 7% more expensive than previous birthdays. Barnacles sell for around 96 euros per kilo, less than a year ago, but 76% more expensive than in 2015. Lobsters remain the most affordable, with a price of around 11.2 euros per kilo.
Merluza, traditionally associated with national coasts, currently reaches markets mainly from abroad, from different points in Africa to the other side of the Atlantic, notably from countries such as Chile or Argentina. In the markets, it stands out for its lowest prices compared to products of national or community origin and especially for the differences in texture. Prices are lower than a year ago, around 16.5 euros per kilo, but they have increased by 44% over the last decade.
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