Butter prices are rising across Europe amidst a drop in supply, with prices climbing 150 percent from $2,900 per tonne in April 2016, to $7,500 in September this year.
Eventually this price rise is going to get passed on the end user, usually in the form of pastries and cakes. Baker Finsbury Food has already warned that prices are going to rise due to the shortage.
France has found itself particularly badly as butter prices are set annually, and are not due to change until February.
Meanwhile Europe’s love of butter is costing it far more than other countries around the world. Iceland, Denmark, and New Zealand top the list of countries that use the most butter, consuming 5.8 kilograms, 4.9 kilograms and 4.9 kilograms per capita respectively in 2015.
At the other end of the scales China and Colombia use barely any, consuming 0.1 kilograms and 0.2 kilograms per capita in that same year.
These are some of the foods that could rise in price the steepest due to the butter bulge.
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All butter croissants will certainly be taking a hit, with a batch of 12-14 using around 300 grams of butter.
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Kellogg’s Rice Krispies Treats — each one packs around a quarter of a tablespoon of butter.
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Nestle’s Toll House Chocolate Chips Cookies — using half a tablespoon of butter for two cookies.
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Cinnamon rolls — taking the recipe of Betty Crocker, each roll uses between four and five tablespoons for the dough, and a further four to eight tablespoons for the filling (plus even more if you want the glaze on top).
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Apple Crumble — a typical recipe needs about 200 grams of unsalted butter. Martha Stewart’s recipe amounts to 14 tablespoons of butter in total, working out as 1.75 tablespoons per slice.
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Brownies — a classic brownie recipe uses around eight tablespoons of butter.
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Butter cake, the much loved dish of Brittany takes around 250 grams of butter.
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Another French staple, the crepe, uses three tablespoons of butter for a batch of nine.
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Macaroni cheese — a main component of which is the beurre blanc sauce that needs 40 grams of butter.
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Toffee — the required caramel uses about 75 grams of butter.
Of course, there are alternatives to butter such as margarine or olive spread, but neither can really replicate the rich & creamy taste.
Matthieu Labbé, managing director for the Federation of Bakery Companies, told the New York Times:
There’s no comparison, if you want to preserve the quality of our products, you have to use butter — you can’t do anything else.