Food prices spike as tomato glut ends

New Zealanders paid more for food last month as summer’s tomato surplus came to an end and the minimum wage went up, data from Stats NZ shows.

Higher prices for tomatoes and cucumbers were the main contributors to a 1.1 per cent rise in overall food prices and a

4.8 per cent jump in fruit and vegetable prices in April.

Tomato prices increased to an average price of $6.34 per kilogram, more than double for March when they were $2.98 per kilo. This was the biggest monthly price rise in more than 10 years.

Stats NZ consumer prices manager Katrina Dewbery said tomato prices had been particularly low over the last three months, and Tomatoes NZ confirmed an oversupply in the domestic market as growers struggled to get their tomatoes exported due to a shortage of freight and a rising cost of shipping resulting from Covid-19.

‘‘Tomato growers are facing a lot of uncertainty regarding exports, influencing their plans for replanting tomato crops,’’ Dewbery said.

Tomato prices in April rose 67 per cent from an average price of $3.80 per kilo a year ago.

In August 2020, tomatoes reached a record high average price of $13.65 per kilo when there was a shortage due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Cucumber prices rose 50 per cent in April, also contributing to the rise in food prices. The average price in April was $12.41 per kilo compared with $8.25 per kilo in March.

These rising prices were partly offset by lower prices for kiwifruit, down 28 per cent last month.

‘‘Kiwifruit is a highly seasonal fruit whose price usually peaks around March towards the end of its season,’’ Dewbery said.

‘‘The weighted average price of kiwifruit was $6.01 per kilo in April, dropped from $8.39 per kilo in March.’’

An increase to the minimum wage, which rose from $18.90 to $20 per hour on April 1, was reflected in higher prices for restaurant meals and ready-to-eat food, which rose 1.2 per cent for the month, the biggest monthly increase in more than a decade, Dewbery said.