These items will cut your food bill!
Food prices have soared 11.3% over the last year. We reveal what you should be putting in your shopping baskets now.
Last month, I highlighted the winners and losers from falling inflation.
But while the Retail Prices Index (RPI) fell to zero for the first time in almost 50 years, the Consumer Prices Index (CPI) - the government's favourite measure of inflation - actually rose to 3.2% in February.
So what exactly is going on behind these numbers?
Let's start by looking at some figures from the Office of National Statistics (ONS). Every month the government body publishes a detailed report showing the items that have changed in price over the month, and by how much.
The basket of goods
The most striking recent price fall is housing costs - dramatic cuts in the base rate have seen annual mortgage interest payments fall by almost 40% over the last year. On top of that, cheap imports from China have pushed down the price of electronic goods by 15%. It's important to note that housing costs aren't included in the CPI, but are included in the RPI. That's the primary reason why the RPI is so much lower than the CPI at the moment.
In contrast, the biggest factor holding up both indices is food, which showed a monthly rise of 1.7% and an annual rise of 11.3% according to the RPI.
Food prices have quickly become a hot topic. Last month, the British Retail Consortium, which compiles its own shop price index, said fresh meat drove food inflation to its highest rate since last September.
It also said the weak pound has made UK produce more attractive for overseas buyers - higher demand means prices are more likely to rise.
I suspect the rising price of food means that many of us think our personal inflation rate is way higher than 0%. After all, we can do away with fancy flat screen televisions and DVD players, but it's a different story when it comes to food. After all, we've all got to eat.
So, in terms of cost, what items should we be putting in our food baskets? And what needs to be left firmly on the shelves?
Here's a quick look at the annual movements of a range of food items, according to the RPI:
|
Food type |
Change over one month |
Change over 12 months |
|
Bread |
+1.4% |
+8.8% |
|
Beef |
+1.4% |
+20.6% |
|
Lamb |
+4.8% |
+21.3% |
|
Pork |
+4.1% |
+19.4% |
|
Poultry |
+1.2% |
+11.4% |
|
Fresh fish |
+0.9% |
+2.0% |
|
Butter |
-0.5% |
-2.1% |
|
Eggs |
-2.4% |
+4.7% |
|
Milk |
n/a |
+11.5% |
|
Tea |
+2.5% |
+11.3% |
|
Coffee and other hot drinks |
-3.4% |
+9.8% |
|
Potatoes |
+2.6% |
+12.4% |
|
Vegetables |
+3.4% |
+21.7% |
|
Fruit |
+1.1% |
+13.8% |
|
Overall |
+1.7% |
+11% |
The largest prices rises have been in meat, with annual lamb prices up by over 21% and beef up 20.6%.
Poultry is up by a lesser 11%, while slower still is fresh fish, which has only gone up 2% over the year. So, if you fancy a bit of Pomfret or Pollack (or, as Sainsbury's would call it, Colin), fish hasn't suffered the dramatic price rises of other meats.
While meat-eaters may be getting a raw deal in terms of inflation, vegetarians shouldn't start celebrating yet. Vegetables are up almost 22% annually, while potatoes have risen 12.4%, and fresh fruit is up 14% on the year.
The truth is, it's hard to find a food item that hasn't gone up in price. However, there are some products which have remained relatively steady.
Eggs, which shot up in price last year actually fell 2.4% last month, and have risen a comparatively less 4.7% over the year. In fact, butter was the only category where prices fell over the year, with prices down 2.1% annually and 0.5% monthly. Anyone fancy an omelette?
It's also relatively good news for junk food lovers, as sweets and chocolate have risen a lesser 10% on last year, while soft drinks are up 2.8% annually.
Coffee, while up 9.8% annually, is down 3.4% month on month - meaning your early morning fix should cost you less this month.
Don't stay in, go out!
While your shopping basket continues to rise in price, eating out, while more expensive than last year, is not rising as fast.
Restaurant meals are up just under 4% annually, compared to food price rises of 11.4%.
Considering all the 241 deals in newsletters such as our fabulous Frugal Friday, and the findings in our recent article, Eat out for less than a takeway, getting creative could mean going out could be cheaper than staying in with those TV dinners.
Cut the costs!
If you prefer to shop online than face those crowded supermarket aisles, MySupermarket.com will find you the cheapest prices for the items you want, search for any deals on those items, then deliver the whole lot to your doorstep!
The process is quick and seamless, and you choose a delivery slot so you don't miss your shopping.
In addition, read these tips from Malcolm Wheatley to discover some savvy ways to cut your food bill.
Food price rises don't look like they'll ease any time soon. And unless you're going to live on bread and water (which, by the way is up 8.8% and 6.5% respectively), we will be paying more for our food this year than we did last.
So, shop savvy, take advantage of those deals, and you'll be halfway to checking out a bargain basket...
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Tracker mortgage payments are down. You can take the advice and drop food costs by buying "Own label" and cutting down on none staples. You really won't taste the difference. Savings in 4% accounts! Buy local veg. Buy big ticket items at major discounts via the web with 2% off VAT(wow). Insulate your home, reduce water usage, fit a meter... and lots more. All this and a 20% cut in pay. What if you haven't got the tracker mortgage, pay rent, have lost your job, (or don't want to work), lost your savings in Iceland, rely on 0.5% interest from savings, your Council Tax has gone up again, your football team has lost the plot, lost your bonus, even though your greed netted huge profits for your bank? Don't dispare, the guys that took over a solid economy, for 10 years said they were looking after it, but forgot to mention that they had allowed controls to lapse and let your futures be invested in sticks (US housing) mortgaged by people who really weren't able to pay them back??? RBS bought a dutch bank with unknown debt... Brown let them. Halifax/Llyods marriage... a Brown shotgun wedding... banks part nationalised - BOLD? Bot really he had NO choice, but retain "stability". But banks have been loaned money and they are not lending it. G20... they have done what they can b4 Brown. What they agreed to do was minor! Hey! Oil ($50 a barrel) is approaching pre hike price of £38, way less than peak at $150, so fuel should be coming down? "Your in control with Bristish Gas"... OfGen, OfEnergy or OfWat .... absolutely NO CONTROL!!! High energy cost means high food costs, including staples like bread. Interest rates are used to control inflation/economy, Brown has little input. The control has gone now at 0.5%... what can he do now sanction -Negative 2% BoE Interest rates? He has no problem adding 2p to fuel pricing. 38+ Stealth taxes... better off? NOT. And by the way "its worse than we thought", good old Alistair admits a mistake, this week??? "SORRY" - not so New Labour, 09 April 2009 Which conservatives will you be voting for next time? Get real!! Who ever you vote for they will have to cut costs including public spending in order to pay back the New Labour debts. Perhaps the "war on terror" will be over and we can cut spending on the MOD? You don't have to cut services, just reduce costs. Make real new jobs. There have always been 2m on the dole, we never count them. BlueNev, Looking forward to 2012 for the Olympics! Don't worry I'll am growing my own so I can pay my share!
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The anti-government points I do not believe get us very far. Let us be clear this is a serious [b]global[/b] depression/ recession. Brown has done exactly what leading global & UK economists have advocated- he has stimulated the economy with very low interest rates, reduced VAT, supported those struggling with re-possession, boldly part-nationalised the banks, continued tax credits for the poor, and has recently been applauded by the G20 for his vigorous efforts to get others to restimulate the global economy. Thacherism made massive public spending cuts and encouraged de-industrialisation which worsened the 1980s recession. The current Tories are talking about squeezing our public services again and anyone who really believes that the lower income groups will do better under them ignores the political history of the Conservative party.
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As an organic veg grower I was interested to see the price increases which the supermarkets have been charging on veg in the past year. I supply direct to the public and haven't put up prices in the last three years! I was amazed to see the price of potatoes had risen in the supermarkets, knowing that, because there was a bumper crop last year, wholesale prices had plummeted, so the sales we made to a local wholesaler were at a price 50% LOWER than the previous year! Someone is making a lot of money out of veg at the moment, but it isn't the growers / local organic box schemes. It would be interesting to know how the prices of veg are calculated for the purposes of the CPI. Which veg are chosen for comparison? Is there any seasonality involved? Are they locally grown or imported? Right now, we still have excellent leeks, cabbages, neeps & purple sprouting broccoli standing out in the veg fields. But if the CPI is looking at the price of out of season tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers etc people need to be aware that depending on where they're grown, what's happened in the past 2 weeks weather-wise (some weeks it's impossible to get on the land to harvest leeks due to rain/snow making the soil too susceptible to damage) the wholesale price of individual types of veg can rise and fall 200% from week to week. The key to keeping your food-shopping costs as low as possible while still ensuring top quality nutrition for your family is to buy local, organic, fresh in-season unprocessed food. We're just approaching the "hungry gap" which means there'll be a lot more imports heading our way through April/May/June ... so become inventive with the humble cabbage and enjoy better health AND prosperity til the new crops are ready July onwards! But the BEST thing you can do is to grow your own ... plenty of time to get those seeds sown!
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12 April 2009