Annual food price increase reaches 18 year high

Embargoed until 10:45am – 15 July 2008

Annual food price increase reaches 18 year high

For the year to June 2008, food prices rose 8.2 percent. This is the highest annual increase since June 1990, Statistics New Zealand said today.

All five subgroups recorded upward contributions to the annual increase, with the most significant upward contribution coming from higher prices for the grocery food subgroup (up 12.1 percent). Within this subgroup, the main contributions came from higher prices for fresh milk (up 22.0 percent), cheddar cheese (up 61.9 percent), bread (up 15.2 percent), and butter (up 86.6 percent).

The remaining four subgroups recorded, in order of significance, the following upward contributions: restaurant meals and ready-to-eat food (up 5.5 percent), fruit and vegetables (up 8.7 percent), meat, poultry and fish (up 4.4 percent), and non-alcoholic beverages (up 4.9 percent).

Food prices increased 1.3 percent in the June 2008 month. The increase was mainly due to higher prices for the following subgroups: fruit and vegetables (up 5.2 percent), meat, poultry and fish (up 1.3 percent), and grocery food (up 0.4 percent).

Within the fruit and vegetables subgroup, the main contributor to the 5.2 percent increase were higher prices for fruit (up 9.7 percent). The increase was driven in particular by oranges (up 28.9 percent), apples (up 13.1 percent), and peaches (up 79.0 percent). Vegetable prices (up 2.6 percent) also made an upward contribution to this subgroup. The increase was driven by higher prices for lettuce (up 34.4 percent), which was partially offset by lower prices for tomatoes (down 18.8 percent).

The rise in prices for the meat, poultry and fish subgroup mainly came from higher prices for poultry (up 4.8 percent).

Geoff Bascand
Government Statistician
15 July 2008

ENDS

There is a companion Hot Off The Press information release published – Food Price Index: June 2008.

fpiJune08alltables.xls

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