The hidden cost of back-to-school sandwiches: Supermarket price differences revealed

Israeli students has returned to school, and with them came back one of the steady, often overlooked household expenses: The 10:00 a.m. sandwich. During the summer vacation, eating hours are more flexible, meals change, and sometimes breakfast is skipped. The return to frameworks brings children back to a more fixed nutritional regimen: A meal before leaving home, a 10:00 a.m. meal, and sometimes lunch in the framework or in a lunchbox.

However, the sandwich of 2026 is no longer the simple sandwich of the past. Alongside cheese, hummus, pastrami, and chocolate, spelt pitas, whole-wheat breads, tuna, various spreads, and products perceived as higher quality or healthier have entered the mix. Yet when examining the price, it becomes clear that even the small 10:00 a.m. meal can turn into a substantial expense.

In a price survey and consumer study conducted by the Institute for Retail Research in Israel, 15 products identified with preparing sandwiches and meals for school were examined across 12 food chains. The result is clear: Even when buying the exact same products in the same sizes, where the purchase is made can significantly alter the bill.

The cheapest basket was found at Rami Levy and totaled NIS 242.55. In second place among the cheapest was Yochananof at NIS 252.20, followed by Carrefour Hyper at NIS 268.45. At the other end were Tiv Taam with a basket of NIS 305.90 and Freshmarket with NIS 306.35. This represents a gap of NIS 63.80, or about 26.3%, for the same basket of products.

The significance for a family does not end with a one-time purchase. These are products, some of which are purchased repeatedly during the school year, so gaps of even a few shekels per item can accumulate to hundreds of shekels over the year.

One of the most extreme gaps was found in a product representing the health trend of recent years: 100% whole spelt pitas, eight units of 50 grams.

At Carrefour Hyper, the price found was NIS 9.90.

At Victory, the same product cost NIS 19.90.

A gap of NIS 10 per package, which is about 101%.

This is precisely where one should be careful with the word "health." The transition of families to spelt breads, whole-wheat breads, and whole-wheat pitas does not mean one should accept any price appearing on the shelf. Precisely in products perceived as special or healthy, particularly high price gaps can sometimes be found.

In a package of handmade pitas, 10 units of 100 grams, the price found at Yochananof stood at NIS 9.90.

At Tiv Taam, the price was NIS 17.90.

This is a gap of NIS 8, or about 81%.

Here, too, it is a relatively basic product. When a family consumes several packages a month, the difference is no longer negligible.

Sweet spreads still occupy a very important place in the world of children's sandwiches, and here was one of the most prominent gaps in the survey.

A 750-gram jar of Nutella was sold at Rami Levy for NIS 19.90, while at Freshmarket the price found was NIS 34.90.

A gap of NIS 15, about 75%.

From the consumer's perspective, this is a classic example of a well-known product with high brand loyalty. In such products, it is easier to forgo price comparison because the consumer already knows what they want and buys it almost automatically.

A 750-gram bottle of Osem ketchup was sold at Yochananof for NIS 7.90.

At Shuk Hayir, the same product was found for NIS 13.90.

The gap is NIS 6 per bottle, about 76%.

Ketchup is not necessarily the sandwich filling itself, but it is an integral part of many children's meals, from omelets to sandwiches with pastrami or yellow cheese.

At the cheese counter, too, it is worth checking the price.

Semi-hard yellow cheese 27% to 29% by weight was found at Rami Levy at a price of NIS 31 per kilo.

At Freshmarket, the price checked was NIS 52.85 per kilo (a price-controlled product).

A gap of NIS 21.85 per kilo, more than 70%.

Conversely, when examining Emek Classic sliced 200 grams, the gap is much smaller: NIS 18.40 at Rami Levy compared to NIS 19.90 at Freshmarket, a gap of about 8%.

That is, even within the same category, behavior is completely different.

Napoleon natural cream cheese 16%, 225 grams, was found at Salah Dabbah for NIS 9.95.

At Tiv Taam, the price was NIS 14.95.

A gap of NIS 5, more than 50%.

Here, too, it is a product that many buy as part of a fixed basket, so it is very easy to miss the gap when it enters the cart alongside dozens of other products.

Hashahar Ha'ole chocolate spread in a one-kilogram package was found at Salah Dabbah for NIS 20.

At Victory, the price was NIS 28.90.

A gap of NIS 8.90, about 44.5%.

When dealing with a household with several children, a large package of spread is a recurring purchase throughout the school year, making this a significant cumulative gap.

A StarKist pack containing four 112-gram cans was found at Keshet-Teamim for NIS 19.90.

At Freshmarket, the price was NIS 26.90.

A gap of NIS 7, about 35%.

Tuna is one of the main alternatives for families looking for a sandwich with a more significant protein source, but here, too, it is worth not assuming that all chains are in the same price range.

Tzabar hummus with tehina, 400 grams, was found at Mahsanei Hashuk for NIS 10.90 compared to NIS 14.90 at Freshmarket, a gap of about 37%.

Soglowek ultra-thin honey turkey pastrami, 144 grams, was sold at Freshmarket for NIS 12, while at Keshet-Teamim the price found was NIS 15.90, a gap of about 33%.

Hellmann's mayonnaise, 394 grams, was found at Rami Levy for NIS 9 compared to NIS 13.90 at Tiv Taam, a gap of more than 54%.

Here, too, it is easy to say that it is overall just a few shekels. However, the 10:00 a.m. meal is not a single product. It consists of bread or pita, cheese or pastrami, a spread, vegetables, and sometimes a fruit, a snack, or an additional item. When NIS 2, NIS 5, or NIS 10 accumulate on each component, the family bill looks different.

It is also important to note that extraordinary gaps were not found in every item.

Lurpak spreadable butter, 250 grams, ranged from NIS 17.50 at Rami Levy to NIS 19.80 at Freshmarket, a gap of about 13%.

Emek sliced yellow cheese, as mentioned, presented a gap of only about 8%.

St. Dalfour strawberry fruit spread, 284 grams, was found at Rami Levy for NIS 14.90 compared to NIS 19.90 at Victory, a gap of about 34%.

A six-pack of rolls was found at Rami Levy for NIS 9.90 compared to NIS 13 at Freshmarket, a gap of about 31%.

That is, there is no single chain that is necessarily the cheapest for every product, nor is there a product that necessarily presents the same gap in every category.

Despite changes in nutritional discourse, student preferences remain largely familiar and traditional. In the ranking of the top ten preferred sandwich fillings, yellow cheese leads in first place, followed by pastrami in second place, and chocolate-flavored spread in third place. In fourth place is tuna, in fifth place cheese spread, and in sixth place hummus spread. The resulting picture is interesting: Alongside parents' desire to introduce more health and variety into the lunchbox, children still give priority to familiar, simple, and accessible flavors, with yellow cheese and pastrami ahead of options perceived as healthier.

In choosing the sandwich base, the preference is also clear: The pita is in first place, continuing to enjoy the advantages of convenience, the ability to hold filling without falling apart, and familiarity from an early age. Bread is in second place, followed by rolls in third place, and tortillas in fourth place, which still fail to undermine the status of traditional bread products. Here, too, it is clear that innovation has entered the lunchbox, but it has not yet replaced the habits on which generations of students in Israel grew up.

The big change in recent years is not only in what is placed between two slices of bread, but also in what is placed around them.

More families are combining fruits, vegetables, cheeses, tuna, and alternatives to white bread. Rolls, whole-wheat pitas, and spelt have become much more available, and the discourse around protein, whole flour, and less sugar reached the world of children's meals long ago.

However, facing health aspirations is economic reality.

A spelt pita can cost NIS 9.90 in one place and almost NIS 20 in another. Nutella can cost NIS 19.90 or NIS 34.90. Yellow cheese by weight can range from NIS 31 to more than NIS 52 per kilo.

Therefore, at the beginning of the school year, it is worth remembering that spending on the 10:00 a.m. meal does not begin and end with the morning sandwich. It is a weekly purchase that recurs over months.

And as in almost every shopping basket, here, too, the question is not only what the child likes to eat, but also where parents choose to buy what they like.