Hunger games: Ukrainians spend half of their income on food, highest in Europe

If you think basic items are costing you too much, take a look at this year’s research by RIA Novosti, which shows how much people in European countries spend on food, alcohol and leisure.

By far the highest expense for households in Ukraine is food, according to statistics revealing the spending habits of average families in 40 European countries. Ukrainians spend more than half their income – 50.9 percent – buying groceries, the study found. And few can afford to visit restaurants and hotels, where only 2.8 percent of their budget is spent.

Ukraine’s place in the ratings has not changed in two years, as a similar research in 2016 also put the country at the bottom of the list. Back then, 54 percent of its citizens’ incomes were spent on food.

Kazakhstan, which is also included in the study, sits in second-last place with 46 percent, while Moldova is the third worst with 43.4 percent of families’ incomes being spent on essentials.

At the other end of the table, there are countries in which people have other items on which to spend their money. Food accounts for just 8.8 percent of the family budget in Luxembourg, while they spend almost the same amount, 8.3 percent, in restaurants and hotels.

The British are the second-least-hungry nation, according to RIA, and one of only two states who prefer spending more money on leisure than in a supermarket. The study shows that food expenses account for 10 percent of British incomes, while 13 percent is spent on discretionary items like culture events and leisure. Notably, only Sweden is ahead of the UK in this regard, with 18.7 percent of its citizens’ income being spent on entertainment.

The Netherlands is third on the list with the least amount of money spent on food, with Ireland and Finland completing the top five.

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