A food price list in Uruguay by the government whets appetites

Food groceries

A fortnightly food price list in Uruguay by the Ministry of Livestock, Agriculture and Fisheries is out for January 21- February 3, 2025. These listings are usually recommendations of a few choice staples across all food classes that locals can sample.

In partnership with the Metropolitan Agri-Food Unit (UAM), the current fortnight’s choice listings indicate quality and affordability.

Debate Uruguay reports that some recommendations reflect previous editions, but there are new additions accessible at the UAM Fair.

One of the best bargains is lettuce, whose governmental recommendation is 25 pesos ($0.57) per two units. In comparable terms, the market price of lettuce in Uruguay is normally around U$5.86 peso ($1.19) per head.

Another recommendation is a carrot bunch at 30 pesos ($0.69) a kilo, while corn comes at 25 pesos ($050) per unit.

Among fruits is watermelon at 10 pesos ($0.23) per kg while  “pavia” (Carica Papaya) costs 75 pesos ($1.72) per kilo. 

Premium fruits include mountain peaches and Moscatel grapes, the last at 70 pesos ($1.61) a kg. Plums are also available at a moderate 55 pesos ($1.26) per kg, while off-season market prices are double that.

An ubiquitous inclusion in most lists, also here, is bell pepper at a cost of 50 pesos ($1.15) to the kilo.

For restaurant foodies, there is the mashed pumpkin meal known as “zapallo kabutiá” at 35 pesos ($0.80) a kilo.

This food list in Uruguay coincides with the Lunar New Year, significant since Uruguay has a notable Cambodian and Chinese community. Although not all people here celebrate the holiday, at least the Asian minority will enjoy these recommendations. 

Thus, the fortnight’s menu recommendations could inform food choices in a country whose cost of living is relatively high. The data below examines this point further by comparing Uruguay’s food prices with global ones.

Uruguay Food Price Statistics

In cost of living metrics, Uruguay ranks at position 42 worldwide in 2025, with 46.3 index points, per Numbeo data. While this may seem low in comparison with that of the world-beating U.S. Virgin Islands at 98.4 index points, it is still considerable. Nearby Brazil, for instance, has only an index of 25.6 points at position 119, globally. 

In terms of grocery prices, Uruguay has a moderate index at  46.5 points, far below the U.S. Virgin Islands’ 106.3. Restaurant meals, however, have a high index of 49.5 points, over half that of the U.S. Virgin Islands at 90.5 points.

Is food expensive or cheap in Uruguay in a global comparison?  

While in 2021 the world averaged 105.854 index points in food prices, Uruguay at number 25 commanded 137.46 index points. This is far above the country with the cheapest food among 165 nations, namely India, at 58.17 points.

How do food prices in Uruguay compare with American ones? 

Food in Uruguay is generally cheaper than that in the United States. For instance, rice at US$1.4 is 69% cheaper than in the U.S., while a burger at US$9.4 is 14% cheaper. This data is courtesy of World Prices.

Do all people afford food in Uruguay

Some 36.1% of the population in Uruguay could not afford food in 2022, according to the World Bank. This means their income is below the monthly food budget.