French fries, a common food, affordable in most parts of the world and generally very popular, have become a luxury for many in Venezuela.
The price of French fries in Venezuela ($4.50) greatly exceeds the cost of this product in countries of the region, such as Brazil ($3.35), Argentina ($3), Ecuador ($2.10), Colombia ($2), Chile ($1.83), Peru ($1.50), and Paraguay ($1.55).
Very few people in Venezuela can afford to buy French fries, a popular food for Venezuelans, which, among many other aspects, highlights the economic and food crisis in the South American country.
Such details expose the impact of hyperinflation on Venezuelans, which climbed from 2,616 percent in 2017 to 34,458 percent in 2018, and up to 136,000 percent as of October 2019, according to recent reports from the Venezuelan National Assembly led by Interim President Juan Guaidó.
Venezuela continues to be one of the weakest points in Latin America’s economy, according to data and prospects from the latest report by the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
Inaccessible French fries
The impact is even greater when the basic monthly income in Venezuela (150,000 bolivars or $8) is taken into account, which makes French fries a luxury meal instead of a quick snack for the day.
VOA estimated that a person with the minimum monthly income in Venezuela must work more than 15 days to make enough money to buy the iconic McDonald’s product.
French fries aren’t the only foods that have essentially become inaccessible for Venezuelans.
Buying a medium-sized McDonald’s combo meal in Venezuela might be almost impossible for an average worker, since they would need to work 34 days, or more than a month, to afford a hamburger, a soda, and French fries at the world’s largest fast food chain, at a cost of 210,000 bolivars, or $11.