Rose Hura, pictured with her partner Jason and their kids Rangimarie, Humarie and baby Puru-Ngahere, has to work hard to make the kai budget stretch. Photo / Northern Advocate
Northlanders are swapping milk for milk powder, going without mince and eggs, and making six-hour round trips to Auckland for butter in a bid to make food budgets stretch.
As supermarket prices and other expenses continue to climb, residents are increasingly crossing items off their grocery lists or going to extremes to fill their fridges.
Kawakawa resident Rose Hura knows all about budgeting for kai – six of her nine children, whose ages range from three to 22, are still living at home.
“Two of my older children both work, and if it wasn’t a combined effort I don’t know how I’d do it.
“With the whole cost of living, it’s been a learning curve to adjust to the increase in prices.”
Hura, who works full-time as a cook at the Railway Station Cafe in Kawakawa, uses less butter these days, and while she loves the health benefits of olive oil, she can’t afford it anymore.
The cost of living has made her “more shopping savvy”, she said.
“I think about where to go to find deals, and I’ll only shop when something is on special.
“It makes you more mindful about how you’re using your kai.
“If I don’t plan it out, I notice my finances go a bit crazy. It’s too easy to over-spend.”
The Commerce Commission’s Annual Grocery Report, released in August, found New Zealanders paid 3% more for their groceries in 2023 than the OECD average.
The Grocery Action Group, which formed in January 2024 to address the market failure in the New Zealand supermarket sector, said nothing has changed for Kiwi shoppers amid rising food prices at supermarkets.
Kerikeri’s Monica Welch, who provides food for struggling families through her charity Finkk (Families in Need Kerikeri), said families were “going without a lot”.
She said two solo mums who recently popped over to pick up some food “squealed with excitement” when they saw butter and eggs.
“A good 20 families” she knew had turned to milk powder because “it’s cheaper and it makes way more than normal milk”.
“Dairy in particular is a biggie, and meat,” Welch said.
“You used to be able to live off mince and sausages, but they’re expensive too.
“They’re going without because they just can’t afford it – the numbers don’t stack up.”
According to Stats NZ, food prices increased 4.1% in the 12 months to September.
Meat, poultry and fish increased the most, at 6.4%, followed by fruit and vegetables at 5.8%.
Average prices include:
Moerewa resident Mike Butler has also noticed the increase in milk prices.
A year ago, it cost $7.50 for two litres of milk at the local dairy, he said.
Now it’s $9.50.
Butler said one of his whānau members now travels to Costco in Auckland once a month to buy bulk food to awhi [help and support] the Ōtiria Marae and extended whānau.
“1kg of butter is $12 compared to $9 or $10 for 500gm [at Woolworths and New World].
“We’re feeling it.
“It’s way cheaper to buy in the city areas than it is to purchase up here.”
Butler’s whānau aren’t alone in their efforts to get cheaper butter in Auckland.
The recent jump in butter prices has seen customers flock to the popular wholesaler, prompting Costco to restrict each store member to 30 blocks.
Butler also thinks twice before buying mince, which is $16.90 for 500gm – or slightly less if you’re willing to consume a much higher fat content.
“It’s 22 bucks a kg of mince,” he said.
“How can they categorise grass fed beef, and prime beef, with x-amount of fat... mince is usually off-cuts.”
Kawakawa resident Lau’rell Douglas said she’s also watching her food budget more closely.
Douglas, the general manager of Bay of Islands Vintage Railway, said cheese and wine are now “off the menu” and she makes trips to the supermarket less often.
“Rather than shopping every week, we’re shopping every three weeks.
“We’re looking at prices across the board.
“I was a quick shopper before but now I pay attention.”
Douglas said eating out had also become less frequent.
“I was going out for dinner with my girlfriends once a week, but we’re now pushing that out to every four to six weeks.
“We’re doing things like going for a walk; we’re choosing less costly options.”
Research by Rabobank and KiwiHarvest has highlighted changes in how Kiwis shop and prepare food.
Rabobank head of sustainable business development Blake Holgate said the research found the average New Zealand household is now spending $240 per week on food.
Because Kiwis were having to do more with less, they were preparing better for grocery shopping, planning meals and using shopping lists, he said.
Jenny Ling is a senior journalist at the Northern Advocate. She has a special interest in covering human interest stories, along with finance, roading, and social issues.