Prices go bananas

Bad news banana-lovers, it took just one broken-down boat to push the price of your favourite fruit to a record high.

Banana have hit their highest price in nearly 70 years due to a supply shortage.

Prices spiked 22 per cent in July to $3.51 a kilogram. The previous peak was $3.23, in March this year, according to Statistics New Zealand.

‘‘Banana prices were at their highest since the series began in 1949, reflecting a supply shortage from Ecuador,’’ Statistics NZ consumer prices manager Matt Haigh said.

‘‘Kiwi households spend an average of $88 a year on bananas, making them the most popular fruit.’’

‘‘Over the last three years, Ecuador has overtaken the Philippines as the main supplier of bananas to New Zealand.’’

Food prices rose 1.3 per cent in August 2016, partly influenced by the record high banana prices.

Countdown spokeswoman Kate Porter said a ship from Ecuador broke down in late August, and there was a price increase during the resulting shortage.

But she said a new shipment of bananas arrived in the country not long after and brought the price back down.

Bananas are $2.99 a kilogram this week at Countdown.

Antoinette Laird, of Foodstuffs, which runs Pak ‘n Save and New World, agreed the boat issue was to blame.