Food prices up in January, milk at record
Food prices rose 1.8 percent in January, as fresh milk prices reached the highest level on record, 0.5 percent above the previous record in November.
Food prices rose 1.8 percent in January, as fresh milk prices reached the highest level on record, 0.5 percent above the previous record in November.
A 7.4 percent lift in the price of fruit and vegetables made up about half the overall increase, Statistics New Zealand (SNZ) says.
Grocery food lifted 0.9 percent for the month, the meat, poultry and fish subgroup increase was 1.7 percent, non-alcoholic beverages gained 1.2 percent, while restaurant meals and ready-to-eat food lifted 0.4 percent.
Lettuce prices rose 48.3 percent last month, and fresh chicken increased 9.3 percent, while nectarines fell 30.1 percent.
For the year to January, food prices are up 3.8 percent, including the impact of the GST rise in October.
Grocery food rose 3.9 percent over the year, with fruit and vegetables up 8.1 percent, restaurant meals and ready-to-eat food up 4.1 percent, meat, poultry and fish up 1.6 percent, and non-alcoholic beverages lifting 1.1 percent.
Lettuce was 95.4 percent higher over the year, with fresh milk up 9.3 percent and potatoes up 35.2 percent, while tomatoes dropped 16.5 percent.
The 1.8 percent rise in food prices last month came after falls of 0.8 percent in December and 0.6 percent in November.
Vegetable prices rose 7.2 percent in January, including an 11.4 percent rise in the price of potatoes, while fruit prices up 7.7 percent.
Fruit prices were showing their typical seasonal rise, while vegetable prices remained above usual for this time of year, SNZ said.
"Although lettuce prices usually rise at this time of the year, unusual weather conditions have contributed to prices being about 75 percent higher than the average January level over the past 10 years.
"Potato prices usually fall in January, however reduced supplies of potatoes due to disease have contributed to higher prices in January 2011."
Over the year chocolate prices rose 9.2 percent, cheddar cheese gained 17.3 percent but is still 6.1 percent lower than its September 2008 peak, and butter added 40.2 percent despite falling 2.4 percent from its December peak.
NZPA
Fri, 11 Feb 2011
Fri, 11 Feb 2011
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Food prices up in January, milk at record
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