“I mean it’s one banana. What could it cost? $10?”
Thankfully no. Even with 7% inflation, Lucille Bluth’s famous guesstimate still isn’t a reality. But given the ongoing rising cost of almost everything considered non-discretionary (the things we can not live without), it feels like it’s possible.
The Australian Bureau of Statistics says the cost of groceries has increased by 8% year on year. That’s in the aggregate. For anyone living on the margins, every increase in essentials means one less essential. Even for those who can afford some discretionary spend, the cost of essentials is biting.
Anita White knew she was paying more, but it was only when she saw the bread she usually bought suddenly cost $2.70 that she went back through her online invoices to see how the jump had happened.
The same wholemeal loaf had cost $1.50 in September 2016. In March 2020, it increased by 10c. By July 2021, that same loaf hit $1.70. But in June 2022 it shot up to $1.90. Three months later it went up again, this time to $2.20. In early April 2023, it still cost $2.20, but when she went to buy it this week, it had jumped to $2.70.
That sent White looking back at other staple items.
Her cheese costs her 30% more than it did three years ago. Her milk, an extra $1.10.
I looked at bread.
— Anita White😷 (@RealAnitaWhite) April 22, 2023
How about cheese?
A 1kg block of tasty cheese has ⬆️ 30% in price in the past 3 years, sitting at $10, many alt. brands far exceed this.
How can people struggling in poverty afford cheese, an important source of protein & calcium, regularly?#RaiseTheRate pic.twitter.com/r5EK6zHzMg
Bread is something we tend to take for granted. It sustains life.
— Anita White😷 (@RealAnitaWhite) April 22, 2023
So I thought I'd take a look at price rises of this staple by reviewing my online shop @woolworths invoices.
I focussed on one simple product:
Woolworths Wholemeal Soft Sandwich Bread.
My invoices reveal..
SEPT 2016. $1.50
— Anita White😷 (@RealAnitaWhite) April 22, 2023
MAY 2017. $1.50
MAR. 2020. $1.60
NOV. 2020. $1.60
JULY 2021. $1.70
JUNE 2022. $1.90
SEPT 2022. $2.20
APRIL 2023. $2.20
👇
TODAY. 😡😡 $2.70
The butter that cost her $2.80 in June 2018, now costs $4.30.
Alright.
— Anita White😷 (@RealAnitaWhite) April 23, 2023
Now for butter.
Here my records are letting me down. Clearly I buy this in person more than online.
Replies on butter welcome.
But I can say from my invoices that in June 2018 a 250g butter at Coles was $2.80.
Today? $4.30 !
Another basic food item that has soared.
By the time she got to a treat – Milo – which she priced per 100g unit, White was exasperated.
As you can see, I splurged without knowing it this month! The Milo was on special, I had no clue I was paying considerably more than historically........ pic.twitter.com/0UWxe05UzD
— Anita White😷 (@RealAnitaWhite) April 24, 2023
“As a doctor and mother, I am deeply concerned about recent rises in the price of essential foods important to a balanced healthy diet,” White says.
“Those relying on social security payments must not be left behind. The wellbeing of Australians, including vulnerable children, is at stake.”
White’s tweet thread hit a nerve, but not a surprising one. The ABS’s latest quarterly inflation figures reported groceries had increased by 8% compared with the same price last year. Inflation was driven by non-discretionary items – the items the ABS rules we can not live without.
For people living on welfare, there is no more fat to cut from the grocery bill.
I thought I'd share what my shopping looks like. This is for a fortnight. People who believe jobseekers are out here living the high life are wrong. this fortnight is script fortnight pic.twitter.com/kDlYqckH4K
— melissa (@ArtistAffame) February 27, 2023
Every increase means one less meal, one less choice.
“Those in poverty can’t buy cheaper brands, we already buy the cheapest,” Melissa Fischer says about her grocery bill. “Now we are simply being priced out.”
It’s not in your imagination. The cost of your basic groceries have increased, almost across the board. A snapshot of grocery prices from 2018 – home brand in this instance – shows the increase:
Foodbank Australia, which helps supply Australian charities with food, has noted an increase in searches from the “find food” button on its website every month – in line with interest rate increases. Foodbank believes most of these hits come from new visitors to the site, as those who have previously relied on Foodbank already know where the charity sites are near them.
The organisation’s last annual report, released in October, found the demand for food services had spiked, including among people who identify as middle class. The chief executive of Foodbank Australia, Brianna Casey, expects this year’s report to tell an even more desperate story.
“We know tonight, more than half a million households will struggle to put a meal on the table,” she says.
“Not only are we seeing an increase in the demand for food relief, but the demographics accessing food relief is changing. It’s not unusual to see double-income households, people with mortgages, or tertiary students with casual employment access help now.
“These are people [that] have already adjusted their shopping list significantly to fit their budget and, quite often, go without meals.”
It is not just food. Groceries are not increasing in isolation. Everything has increased.
Power bills, which have already jumped by 30% on average, will increase again come July. While a $1.5bn energy bill relief plan is part of the coming budget, it will be no help to people already on hardship programs, where a nominated amount is withdrawn every fortnight – no matter the bill.
The national rental average has increased above inflation for the last year, and the tight rental market has locked most minimum wage earners out.
For someone on jobseeker or other comparative welfare rates, there are no affordable properties to rent and, increasingly, rooms are becoming out of reach. Mortgage interest repayments have increased by more than $1,000 for some people with a $500,000 loan, with at least one more interest rate increase on the way.
The experts believe inflation may have peaked. But its effects will be with us for some time, with your grocery bill a regular reminder of just how much things have changed.
