Lyse Comins
For all your consumer grumbles and queries, e-mail
lysecomins@gmail.com or post@inl.co.za (R38 for 10kg) and baby marrows to R8 a pack (R160 for 20 packs). Cabbages were just R2 each (R20 for a pocket of 10).
I paid R5 each for clingwrapped cabbages last month. Obviously the pre-packaged produce costs more at the market too; there is often a choice between loose or pre-packed produce.
At supermarkets loose tomato prices ranged from R9.99 a kilogram at Checkers to R17.99 a kilogram at Woolworths.
Potato prices were also between 46 and 70% more expensive per kilogram than market prices.
I don’t have prices from last month to compare these to, but in the case of tomatoes and lettuce, prices have dropped from around R20 a kilo and more than R12 a head several months ago.
Market agents from RSA, Delta and Hanly remarked about an oversupply of fresh produce – potatoes, carrots and tomatoes in particular – as driving prices down but they expected prices to rise towards month end.
Carrots
for Community Social Action (Pacsa) research and advocacy co-ordinator Julie Smith said fresh produce prices gathered across six supermarkets servicing lower LSMs in Pietermaritzburg had also indicated a downward trend in June.
The price of carrots, cabbage, tomatoes and potatoes had dropped in double digits, but onion, spinach and apple prices had risen.
Smith said competition for farmers was tough and prices low, but supermarkets took a substantial share of the profits from the value chain.
FNB agricultural economist Paul Makube attributed lower prices to the dynamics of supply and demand, adding that some fresh produce produced under irrigation was not as impacted by drought.
“If there are shortages prices increase immediately and if there is an over supply the response is also strong. There has been an improvement in output in the irrigated areas and the late rains in some production areas have also improved production.”
He said the drought had had a greater impact on onion production as there had been insufficient seedlings to propagate for the season.
The country’s dams were on average 52.5% full and it remained to be seen whether the drought would break with the spring rains, Makube added.
“We can expect moderate prices heading into spring because vegetables have shorter production times, so we are likely to see a replenishment of supply.
“There is also consumer resistance because consumers are under pressure due to interest rate increases and we have seen price hikes at the beginning of the year,” he said.
“Vegetables are just a component of the food basket, the rest remains relatively elevated.
“It’s good news that vegetable prices have come down and the good news is that it will also filter into food inflation, which has been a worry for the Reserve Bank. We should see food inflation moderating in the medium term,” he said.
Makube said it was difficult to understand supermarkets’ pricing mechanisms as there was always a difference when compared to market prices, but labour and costs of convenience, such as repacking into smaller packs, had to be factored in.
SA Consumer Union spokesman Clif Johnston said supermarket prices were sticky when market prices were on a downward trend and consumers should resist buying when prices spiked.
“Prices of fruit and vegetables in retail outlets rise quite quickly when market prices rise, but fall rather slowly when market prices drop. This is understandable when we realise that retailers are in the business of making profits,” Johnston said.
“Prices are only held in check by consumer resistance and competition. On a simplistic level, when input prices rise, selling prices are increased immediately, even on existing stock, as this maximises profits.
“When input prices fall, retailers watch the competition and only lower their selling prices when they stand to lose business to others,” he said.
Johnston said consumers should employ price resistance.
“Consumers should bear these fundamentals in mind when shopping. Prices are kept in check only by consumers who shop around for the best value, value, being a function of cost and quality.
“Consumer resistance works. Buy something else when prices spike.”
For me, shopping at the market has translated into savings on my monthly grocery bill, but I now need to resist the temptation to splurge those
“Input costs like maintaining food safety standards, washing, grading, packaging and transportation from farms via Freshmark distribution centres to Shoprite and Checkers stores have the effect that retail prices cannot be compared to those available on municipal markets.”
She added that the quality and class of fruit and vegetables needed to be taken into account: “There has been some easing on pricing over the last four months, but inflation remains in double digits on fruit and vegetables. The consumer trend to purchase smaller pack sizes continues as consumers have a fixed amount to spend,” she said.
A Woolworths spokeswoman said to deliver produce that remains fresh for longer the retailer buys directly from farmers with whom it has longterm relationships.
“We work with these dedicated farmers to use only cultivars which deliver on taste and flavour but also provide the required shelf life.”
She added that the retailer and its suppliers strived to keep price increases “to an absolute minimum”.
“There are, however, circumstances which lie outside our control which have an impact on our prices.
“Current factors are related to the national drought, the depreciating currency, escalating fuel and electricity prices and the cost of packaging materials,” she said.
Pick n Pay group executive for strategy and corporate affairs David North described the price survey as “inaccurate and misleading”.
“Prices differ crucially by product quality and grades, which makes simple comparisons inaccurate. The product range you selected is too small for a representative comparison, and you focused on the prices in one store when some of our competitors vary their prices between store,” he said.
“Given your small sample size, your survey is skewed by the number of short-term promotions, which obviously vary by the day and by retailer.
“We are concerned you have not therefore produced a fair or representative comparison.”
North added: “Apart from variations in quality, products sold at markets are not subject to our stringent standards in terms of food safety and traceability.”
North said the supermarket sourced more than 95% of its fresh produce directly from farmers.
“Pick n Pay prices do reflect adjustments in farm gate prices. As we have longer term relationships with our producers, these variations may not always be as pronounced as seen day to day in markets.”
He added that items such as mushrooms and cucumber had not been included in my survey so it was “not an accurate representation of a basket purchased by the majority of customers”.