"Prices are back near the record level in June last year," he said.
"Fruit and vegetable prices eased off somewhat in June, from their highs in May.
"Lettuce and broccoli prices were down, but tomato and kumara prices continued to rise. Kumara prices were at their highest-ever level - $8.18 a kilogram."
A wet autumn pushed vegetable prices to high levels in May.
Overall, food prices increased 3 per cent over the past year.
Vegetable prices increased 18 per cent, led by higher prices for tomatoes, kumara, and lettuce. The average price for 1kg of tomatoes was $8.69 in June 2017, compared with $6.77 in June 2016. However, tomatoes were typically more expensive in winter, often going above $10 a kg.
Grocery food prices rose 2.1 per cent in the year to June 2017, led by higher prices for dairy products.
Spending on grocery food such as dairy, bread, and cereals, makes up around $35 of every $100 spent on food, compared with $15 for fruit and vegetables. Because the annual increase for grocery food was much lower than fruit and vegetables, the overall increase in food prices was just 3.0 per cent.
