Cost of average food basket rises 3.9% to R4 198.93
THE HOUSEHOLD Affordability Index has reported that the average cost of a household food basket in South Africa increased by 3.9 percent, or R159.37, in April to R4 198.93 compared with a month earlier – the highest level since September last year.
The index tracks food price data from 44 supermarkets and 30 butcheries, mostly in the townships of Joburg, Durban, Cape Town, Pietermaritzburg and Springbok.
In the past eight months, from September 2020 to April, the average cost of the household food basket was up by 8.9 percent, or R342.59.
In September, the average cost of the household food basket was R3 856.34.
The data noted that the household food baskets in all the cities surveyed showed a month-on-month increase, and the food basket had been the most expensive in April.
“All household food baskets in April are at the highest level since September 2020, and 36 out of 44 foods in the average household food basket went up. The increases were across the board, and core staple foods, vegetables and meats went up. The monthly spike in April is the highest we have ever seen,” the report showed.
However, the food price data in April was collected before the latest fuel price hike, which came into effect on April 7, and before the new electricity tariff increase of 15.63 percent.
“Fuel prices and electricity prices run through the entire economy and the food value chains. The full impact of these increases has yet to come through. Based on the current upward trend in food prices, we predict that with the increases in fuel and electricity, food prices will increase beyond 10 percent for the 2021 term,” the report said.
In a separate report released earlier this week, research by TransUnion found that the number of South African consumers in households whose income was negatively impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic had dropped by 20 percentage points since the week of November 30.
However, the study also found that nearly nine out of 10 of these financially impacted consumers remained concerned about their ability to pay their bills and loans.