The mechanism is first and foremost one of dependence on imports. Nearly 90% of the products consumed come from elsewhere, including fruit and vegetables. This imported share helps keep food prices well above those in mainland France.
In Guadeloupe, food prices are 42% higher than in mainland France, according to a France Info report. This high cost of living weighs on families' daily lives, forcing them to count every expense.
The issue is not new. The high cost of living remains a recurring subject for overseas populations. In Guadeloupe, it is denounced on the walls and remains, according to France Info, an explosive issue, even if protest remains limited for now.
In this context, a single income must sometimes support an entire household. France Info reports the case of a civil servant whose salary amounts to 1,600 euros. Seven people live on this sole resource.
Other households combine the high cost of living with a lack of income. Matthithia's mother is unemployed, like 17% of Guadeloupeans, according to figures reported by France Info.
The report also follows a woman who, during filming, had to forgo buying cereal for her son. The sacrifice involves a basic product, not an exceptional expense.
To keep the bill down, some residents are turning to short supply chains. France Info visited Les Abymes, at a small market of local producers, where vendors and customers note the same thing: life has become far too expensive.
For both groups, the price gap with mainland France is not an abstract statistic. It translates into unfinished shopping trips, smaller meals, and a budget that leaves no margin as soon as the salary is paid.
France Info stresses that protest remains limited at this stage. The issue itself is not: in Guadeloupe, the high cost of living continues to weigh on families and is still described as explosive.