Published in Industry Insights
Croatia's Anchored Prices: Retail Meat Stays Tied to May 2025
From 1 October 2026 Croatia extends its "anchored price" rule to all products and services, and for meat sold in shops the comparison price stays at 2 May 2025, which we think will move price pressure up the supply chain toward meat suppliers.
Martina Osmak
Director of Marketing
MeatBorsa's take
This section is our reading of the situation, not reported fact. The confirmed rules and their sources follow below.
Croatia's "sidrenje cijena", or price anchoring, does cover meat. Meat sold in shops counts as food, and food has been anchored since May 2025. From 1 October 2026 the rule is extended to every product and service in Croatian retail, but for food the comparison price does not change. Meat on a Croatian shelf will keep showing what it cost on 2 May 2025, next to today's price.
We think the effect for the meat trade is not at the shelf but one step back. When shoppers can see every increase since May 2025 printed on the label, retailers have a strong reason to avoid showing new increases. The easiest way to do that is to push back on their suppliers. So we expect meat processors, packers and importers selling into Croatian retail to face harder price talks, requests for promotions, and resistance to passing on higher costs.
The rule itself does not set any price between businesses. It applies to sales to consumers. A wholesale deal between a Croatian importer and a foreign meat supplier is not labelled with an anchored price. But the retail end of that chain now is, and in our view that pressure will travel back along the chain.
There is also an opportunity. Retailers with a website must publish their full price lists every working day in a machine-readable file, including the anchored price. For anyone selling meat into Croatia, that is a free, store-by-store view of retail meat prices and how far they have moved since May 2025.
What we assume, and why we could be wrong
- We assume retailers will try to keep visible price increases small. If shoppers pay little attention to the second price, retailers may feel less need to hold prices down, and supplier talks would stay normal.
- We assume retailers pass the pressure to suppliers rather than cut their own margins. Some chains may choose to absorb part of it themselves, especially on high-traffic items like minced meat and chicken.
- We assume supplier costs stay above their May 2025 level. The farm sector says fuel, feed, energy and labour cost more today. If input costs ease, the gap between today's cost and the anchored price matters less.
- We assume the pressure lands on domestic and imported meat alike. It could instead fall harder on one group, for example if retailers switch to cheaper imported cuts to keep shelf prices close to the anchor.
What the rules say
On 10 September 2026 the Croatian Government adopted a decision on showing an additional price as a direct price control measure. It enters into force on 1 October 2026, according to the Ministry of Economy.
- All products and services are now covered. Before, only food, drinks, cosmetics, cleaning products, toiletries and household goods had to show an anchored price.
- For newly covered products and services, the anchor is 10 September 2026. This includes clothing, electronics, furniture and all services, such as restaurants and cafés.
- For food, including meat, the anchor stays at 2 May 2025. The ministry says food will not get a second anchored price, to avoid two reference prices on the same product.
- Retailers with a website must publish price lists daily. The files must be in CSV or XML format, updated by 8:00 every working day, and kept online for at least 30 days.
The anchored price must be shown clearly next to the current price, on the shelf, in shop displays, on flyers and on websites. If a product was on promotion on the reference date, the anchored price is the regular price before the discount. Market inspectors will check compliance.
The ministry's guidance says the rule applies to all sellers to consumers, including family farms that sell directly to the public. It does not apply to loyalty apps, member-only discounts, or TV and radio adverts. Restaurant and café services are among the newly covered services, so their price lists use the 10 September 2026 reference date.
How the farm sector has responded
The Croatian Chamber of Agriculture (HPK) said on 21 September that it sees the anchored price as good for consumers because it improves transparency. Its president, Željko Mihelić, also argued that the rule shows only that a price has risen, not where in the chain the increase happened.
The chamber called for price monitoring across the whole food chain, from the farm to the processor, distributor and shop. It said farmers pay today's costs for fuel, feed, energy and labour, and that it wants data to show whether any pressure to keep shelf prices close to the anchor is being passed down to farm-gate prices. HPK stressed that it was not claiming this will happen, only that it wants the data to see it.
What we are watching next
We will watch the first daily price files after 1 October for movement in retail meat prices against their May 2025 anchors. We will also follow Croatian farm-gate prices for pigs, cattle and poultry, and any reports from suppliers on changed terms with retail chains.
Sources
Pojašnjenja za primjenu dodatne cijene i objavu cjenika od 1. listopada - Ministarstvo gospodarstva
Isticanje dodatne cijene i objava cjenika: pojašnjenja za primjenu (PDF) - Ministarstvo gospodarstva
HPK: Sidrena cijena ne smije postati sidro za hrvatskog poljoprivrednika - TV Jadran