It is no secret that food prices have gone up in the past year and, in fact, were the biggest contributor to September’s increase in annual consumer price inflation (CPI).
But to keep on top of the price changes of certain food items in order to cut down on your grocery bill, it helps to rather monitor the month-to-month changes in the prices.
After all, a food product that has increased significantly in the past year may actually be dropping in price from one month to the next.
Stats SA’s CPI report for September reveals that annual CPI rose to 5.4 percent, and food and non-alcoholic beverages contributed 1.4 percent to this increase. By comparison, transport costs, which include fuel, contributed 0.6 percent.
From August to September, however, there are some foods that have come down in price, and if you know which they are – as well as which have gone up, it may help you cut down on your grocery bill a little bit.
The National Agricultural Marketing Council (NAMC) food basket cost report released on Wednesday shows that some food items jumped quite a bit in price in the past month. And even though the percentage may seem rather insignificant, especially if you are particularly fond of the affected food products, your choices can add up, depending on their price increase.
In total, prices of foods in the NAMC basket increased by 1.0 percent from August to September, but individually many products saw rather big changes.
The report shows that these foods increased in price over the one-month period, and thus may be worth considering cutting back on:
- Bananas per kg: 11 percent/ R1,90 increase
- Instant coffee 250g: 6.8 percent/R3,59 increase
- Rice 2kg: 4.3 percent/R1,77 increase
- Oranges per kg: 3.2 percent/R0,53 increase
- Ceylon/black tea 250g: 3.0 percent/R1,47 increase
- Chicken giblets per kg: 2.4 percent/R1,09 increase
- Peanut butter 400g: 2.1 percent/R0,86 increase
- Eggs 18s: 2.0 percent/R1,02 increase
- Polony 1kg: 1.8 percent/R0,95 increase
- Sunflower oil 750ml: 1.6 percent/R0,56 increase
- Cheddar cheese per kg: 1.4 percent/R2,00 increase
- Potatoes per kg: 1.2 percent/R0,23 increase
- Maize meal 5kg: 1.0 percent/R0,65 increase
A 700g load of brown bread was the only food item in the basket to stay at the same price.
The report shows that these foods came down in price over the one-month period, and thus may be worth considering including more of in your grocery list:
- Tomatoes per kg: 7.4 percent/R1,78 decrease
- Beef mince per kg: 3.2 percent/R3,37 decrease
- Cabbage each: 2.9 percent/R0,60 decrease
- Baked beans tinned 410g: 1.2 percent/R0.18 decrease
- Dried beans 500g: 1.1 percent/R0.33 decrease
- Onions per kg: 0.3 percent/R0,08 decrease
The NAMC food basket report states that South Africa's food inflation is expected to continue with the rising trend in the coming months. This is due to concerns about El Niño conditions impacting sugar cane production, particularly in the Northern Hemisphere, coupled with elevated oil prices.
“Simultaneously, the South African poultry industry faces significant risks stemming from the ongoing Avian Influenza outbreak, which has necessitated the culling of birds and resulted in reduced supplies of poultry meat and eggs.”
Additionally, as of September 2023, the price for one metric ton of white maize averaged R3,908, marking a modest 8.1 percent increase compared to August 2023. Similarly, yellow maize averaged R3,829 per ton, reflecting a 5.6 percent increase from the previous month.
Sunflower prices averaged R8,957.00, indicating a 2.0 percent decrease from the preceding month's price.
“It's noteworthy that South Africa's inflation rate has consistently remained within the central bank's target range of 3 percent to 6 percent since May 2023. This stability led the South African Reserve Bank (SARB) to pause its recent interest rate hikes after the latest monetary policy meeting.”
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