Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has announced price caps on six basic foodstuffs as of February 1 in order to fight inflation ahead of elections this spring.
Orban said in a video statement on his Facebook page on January 12 that the measure would impact sugar, flour, cooking oil, pork legs, chicken breasts, and milk.
Prices for the products will have to revert back to levels from October 15 last year in every store, he said.
The price caps come as inflation is rising across Europe, with the year-on-year rate in Hungary hitting 7.4 percent in November.
In November, the government put a cap on gasoline prices to 480 forints ($1.55 euros) per dollar.
Orban, a nationalist who has been in power since 2010, faces a challenge to his rule with opposition parties agreeing to unite behind one candidate in the April 3 general election.
Recent polls suggest a close race for Orban's ruling Fidesz party against the opposition's joint candidate for prime minister, Peter Marki-Zay.
Orban’s critics say he and his Fidesz party have dismantled democratic institutions in Hungary, while trashing judicial independence and controlling the media.
