Price movements across food categories vary
Food prices in New Zealand have experienced the lowest annual increase since December 2021, rising by 4.8% compared to the previous year, according to the latest figures by Stats NZ.
Annual increase across food categories
The annual rise in December was attributed to price increases across the five major food categories measured by Stats NZ. The price movements for the 12 months to December, in order of their contribution to the overall change, were as follows:
- restaurant meals and ready-to-eat food prices: up by 7.1%
- grocery food prices: up by 5.4%
- non-alcoholic beverage prices: up by 5.5%
- meat, poultry, and fish prices: up by 2.3%
- fruit and vegetable prices: up by 1.5%
“The largest contribution to the annual change was restaurant meals and ready-to-eat food, mainly driven by higher prices for dine-in meals and takeaways,” James Mitchell (pictured above), Stats NZ consumers prices manager, said in a media release.
Dip in monthly food prices
In December, monthly food prices showed a slight decrease of 0.1% compared to November. The decline was led by lower prices for non-alcoholic beverages, driven by reductions in fizzy drinks and energy drinks. Other contributing factors to the monthly fall included tomatoes, nectarines, and lamb.
Mitchell said 45% of items fell in price in December, up from the 39% of items that experienced a price drop in December 2022, showcasing a trend of more items decreasing in price compared to the same period in the previous year.
“In the last year, five months have shown a price fall,” he said. “The changes we are seeing in food prices for the last few months are comparable to what we saw prior to 2020.”
Decrease in alcohol prices
Alcoholic beverage prices experienced a drop in December compared to November, contributing to an annual increase to the year ending December. All items in the alcoholic beverage category, including wine, beer, spirits, and liqueurs, fell in price, aligning with the usual December trend, the Stats NZ data showed.
Stats NZ initiated monthly price data reporting for alcoholic beverages in November 2023, integrated into the quarterly consumers price index (CPI).
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