Stats NZ announced that food prices have risen by 8.3 percent since this time last year, and there are a few groceries staples that have seen the biggest increase.
‘Food prices’ refers to any food you can buy in the country, not just groceries but also restaurant meals, snacks at the movies, etc.
Katrina Dewbery, Stat NZ’s consumer prices manager, said that “yoghurt, two-minute noodles, and tomato-based pasta sauce were the largest drivers within grocery food.”
Groceries have seen the biggest increase in price, rising by 7.7 percent since September 2021, with fruit and vegetables increasing by 16 percent.
When it comes to fruit and veg, the biggest risers were broccoli, tomato, and capsicums.
Meals at restaurants and ready-to-eat food (e.g. fast-food) prices have risen by 6.9 percent over the last 12 months, with pizzas and hamburgers seeing the biggest increase for individual items over the last month at 2 percent and 1.7 percent respectively.
Foodstuff NZ’s (which owns Pak ‘N’ Save, New World, and Four Square) managing director Chris Quin recently took a trip to the United States to talk with other grocery retailers from around the world and said that everyone is dealing with the same issues, which he called a “complex set of headwinds”.
“We’re all facing the same set of challenges driven by the three W’s - war, wages, and weather,” he told Newshub.
“We’re also seeing the same changes in consumer behaviour, where value is now king.”
He chalks up a lot of the problems to a worldwide shortage of workers, which affects all parties.
“Acute labour shortages continue to be one of the biggest problems facing businesses,” Quin continued.
“The labour squeeze is not only hurting our industry, but also our producers. Fruit and veges are going to cost more if we don't have enough people to pick, pack or stack them on shelf.”
