Ripped-off Irish consumers can learn a priceless lesson in France

Séamus Martin, based in the south of France, asks if Irish consumers have lost the plot

Have you ever thought we Irish are being ripped off? The thought struck me forcefully in the Champion supermarket in the village of Cazouls about seven kilometres from where, in my retirement, I spend the summer these days. There was something unusual on sale in the butchery department.

Entire forequarters of lamb, prepared for the freezer in proper butcher's cuts, including chops and rolled shoulder, were on sale at €10.80 per carton.

There was a brisk trade, but nothing like the rush there might be for such a bargain back in Ireland, where lamb prices are extremely high by European standards.

Shoppers picked up the cartons, examined the contents carefully and read the labels in detail before making their decision. For this correspondent, the key words on the label were in small print at the bottom stating: "Origine Irlande."

The lamb had left Ireland by sea or plane, destined perhaps for a port or airport in northern France. Then it travelled all the way down to the Languedoc, reducing in price with every kilometre from its high in Ireland to its low in Cazouls. Yet Champion was making enough profit to be a major sponsor of the Tour de France.

Wine, on the other hand, has quite the opposite effect. Good vin de pays costs €1.80 per litre when it leaves Languedoc and hits €10.00 per bottle by the time it reaches Ireland. Perhaps one of our renowned economists can explain why the law of diminishing prices applies to the southward journey of lamb and the law of increasing prices applies to the northward journey of wine.

Down here, indeed, things are different. Everything, apart from petrol, is cheaper and services are so good you have to pinch yourself to ensure you're not dreaming.

The local bank, for example, opens at 8 a.m. on weekday mornings but on Saturday the manager, who is also the mayor, gets a lie-in and does not have to open up the branch until 8.30 a.m.

Then there's the weather and the food. Apart from one thunderstorm, there has been no rain since May. Twenty minutes away, down at the beach at Valras Plage where one spends a lot of time these sunny days, a restaurant called Le Phare offers a menu at €11.90.

There's a choice of 10 entrees, 20 main courses, cheese or dessert, served and presented with the professionalism one might expect from the most expensive in the business.

House prices are rising, though. A 2,000 sq ft residence, twice the size of the average Irish semi, could cost you more than €100,000. Not surprisingly, there are many Irish here. Soon we will be preparing for the wine harvest. Last year in one vineyard, the grower and all the harvest workers were Irish.

Perhaps you'd like to join us. Getting here from Ireland is, of course, more expensive than from almost all other European countries. Are we not, after all, renowned for our willingness to put up with anything?

I'm wondering about my own sanity as I prepare to pay through the nose to come back home. The nearest airports with direct flights from Ireland are Barcelona and Girona across the border in Spain. Aer Lingus offers Dublin-Barcelona return next month for €259.53 including taxes. Ryanair, the low-fares airline, will take you to and from Girona for €281.28 usually on an old 737-200.

This compares with Ryanair's £73.81 London-Girona return on a shiny new Boeing.