13 May 2010

Price of food falls - but still higher than last year

2:41 pm on 13 May 2010

Food prices fell by 0.5% in April due to lower meat and vegetable costs, figures released by Statistics New Zealand show.

The cost of meat, poultry and fish fell by 2.6% in April compared to the month before, largely due to discounting of beef, chicken and lamb.

Fruit and vegetables prices fell by 1.7%. The price of kiwifruit dropped more than a third as the new season's crop hit the market.

The cost of alcohol and groceries rose during the month.

Overall, the cost of food is 0.4% higher than a year ago and more than 8% higher than two years ago.