Estonia's biggest supermarket chains said there has been an increase in sales of discounted food, Monday's "Aktuaalne kaamera" reported. Reductions are usually between 30 percent and 60 percent on foods that have reached their sell-by-date.

Kaimo Niitaru, Prisma's assortment and procurement director, told the show there is a clear uptick when figures are compared for January 2022 and 2023.

"The number of products bought at a discount has increased by 24 percent. This is certainly influenced by the fact that the price increase has been higher for fresh products, where consumption and demand have decreased and this creates a certain surplus," he said.

At Selver, purchases of products with discount stickers have increased by 15 percent over the year.

Coop said the store has fewer items with reduced prices, but those that are marked down quickly disappear. These include ready-made food, minced meat, meat, milk and baked goods.

While buying discounted food is becoming more popular and there is increasing awareness about food waste, customers are primarily affected by rising prices, supermarkets believe.

Rimi's Katrin Bats said approximately 70 percent of goods with an orange discount stick are purchased.

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