Vasyl Kuznetsov, a cash-strapped Ukrainian pensioner, makes no bones about his views of spiralling food prices as he shops for groceries in Kiev’s Volodymyrsky market.

“This bazaar should be demolished and those responsible for these prices jailed,” says the 77-year-old, standing in front of a meat counter. “How can we survive and buy meat when it has doubled in the past year to nearly $10 per kilogram? Everything has gone up – cooking oil, my electricity and gas bills. I can’t even afford to buy meat for this week’s Easter holidays.”