• Stats NZ records 5.0% annual food price inflation (FPI) in July 2025 
• Foodstuffs see retail prices rise 3.4% YOY for their comparable FPI basket of products 
• Beef, lamb, butter all up ≥ 30% but pork, chicken, olive oil see YOY falls 
• Root veggies record double-digit price declines as winter impacts leafy greens 
• Stats NZ’s Grocery FPI higher than Foodstuffs Grocery FPI for 19 of 24 months 
 
The Foodstuffs grocery co-ops are reminding shoppers to be mindful of domestic weather and global commodity conditions, as some popular foods see price rises while others see price falls. 
 
Stats NZ has today reported an annual food price inflation (FPI) rate of 5.0% in July 2025, while Foodstuffs recorded an average year-on-year retail price increase of 3.4% for their comparable FPI basket of products – below Stats’ FPI for the 5th consecutive month. 
 
Foodstuffs NZ Managing Director Chris Quin says the co-ops’ 3.4% YOY retail FPI rate was driven largely by beef steak and lamb legs increasing 30% and 35.5% respectively, and butter 36.5%, all due to ongoing strong offshore demand for NZ exports amid global supply constraints. 
 
“The good news is that many other proteins were cheaper in July than a year ago. Whole frozen chickens, pork leg roasts, fresh hoki fillets, cans of tuna – four items in our FPI basket that saw price falls of 3.5 to 9.5%.” 
 
Quin say this year’s harsher winter was to blame for a 4.3% increase in the produce category. 
 
“Winter has been with us in earnest over the last two months, inhibiting growing conditions, damaging some crops, and closing roads, particularly in the Nelson and Marlborough regions, increasing costs through additional wait-times and travelling alternative routes.” 
 
“Spinach and even cabbage were in shorter supply, but July was a comparatively good month for many favourites: orange kumara, white potatoes, red capsicum all around 15% cheaper than last year, and courgettes, brown onions, mandarins, parsnips and carrots down 4 to 10%.” 
 
“We’ve always said it’s best to shop seasonally for fruit and veg. Now, with global pressures on our meat and dairy, our more general advice is to ‘shop to the conditions’. For example, butter is still up but olive oil prices are trending down, and margarine remains excellent value.” 
 
Quin says the latest Annual Grocery Report acknowledged the role of GST on NZ food prices too. 
 
“Unlike Australia, the UK, and Ireland, New Zealand applies 15% GST to all food. That affects any  overseas comparisons, as does the cost of shipping it here and trucking it around.  
 
“So, while food prices here, even with GST, are 3% over the OECD benchmark dollar average, the same data shows we’re actually 3% cheaper than the OECD median, the 13th cheapest of its 38 member countries, and cheaper than all but one of the dozen others with small populations. 
 
“It was also good to see the latest Grocery Report introduce the idea of a Grocery FPI rate, given Foodstuffs’ long-running comparison of FPI at our stores with Stats NZ’s national FPI, which adds in a number for restaurants and takeaways, as we’ve done to align with Stats’ methodology.  
 
“We found Stats NZ’s national Grocery FPI rate, excluding restaurants and takeaways, was higher than ours for 19 of the past 24 months – further proof our co-ops are working hard to keep food prices low, while constantly steering shoppers towards savings and affordable options.”