'Olivier index': Popular New Year salad ingredients 20.5% more expensive on year
Over the past year, the ingredients needed to make a traditional New Years' "Olivier Salad" have risen in price by 20.5 percent, according to a report by ERR's Russian-language service.
As 2026 approaches, ETV+ show "Horizont" assessed the cost of some of the most commonly eaten foods during the New Year celebrations in its third annual "Olivier index."
The "Olivier index" is an informal economic indicator, similar to the "Big Mac index," that tracks the cost of making an Olivier salad by examining the price of its core ingredients – in this case, carrots, potatoes, mayonnaise, peas, eggs and sausage.
In search of the cheapest products for the feast, the program's correspondent Julia Rostok went to the supermarkets Selver, Maxima, Prisma, Grossi, Rimi and Lidl to find out the prices of all the different ingredients.
Compared to last year, the ingredients needed for a "budget" Olivier salad have risen in price by 20.5 percent to €7.07. In 2024, the ingredients for the same salad cost €5.87, and in 2023, €4.96.
Over the course of the year, the cost of carrots has risen by 51.7 percent, potatoes by 40.7 percent, mayonnaise by 38.7 percent, canned peas by 20.7 percent, eggs by 17.8 percent, and sausage by 10.7 percent.
In addition to Olivier salad, "Horizont" also looked at the cost of making some other popular New Years' dishes.
The ingredients needed to make a salad known as "herring under a fur coat" ("shuba") were slightly cheaper this year than in 2024, at €4.46 (-1.8 percent).
"Herring under a fur coat" is a layered salad made with diced salted herring, covered in layers of grated boiled vegetables (potatoes, carrots, beets), chopped onions and mayonnaise. The cost of herring fell by 12.2 percent, while beetroot is now 38.8 percent cheaper than in 2024.
The cost of red caviar has not changed in three years – €49.90 per kilogram. A loaf of bread rose in price by 5.6 percent.
The price of a ready-made Napoleon cake (400 grams) rose by 4.6 percent over the year to €3.14.
A pre-made "kholodets" – a traditional Eastern European cold meat jelly or aspic dish, popular in Russia and Ukraine – now costs 9.5 percent more than a year ago, while mandarins are around 27.5 percent more expensive.
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Editor: Michael Cole, Elina Kachan
