Inflation on Food and Non-alcoholic beverages continued to gain momentum in June 2022, with similar inflation levels last seen in March 2017. Food inflation was mainly driven by price increases in meat and breads/cereals, as well as plant oil products, dairy and eggs..
After reaching a new all-time high in March 2022 at 159.7 points, the FAO Food Price Index (FPI) dropped to 154.2 points in June 2022, decreasing by 2.3% from May 2022 but still 23.1% higher than in June 2021. The month-on-month downturn was mainly driven by declining prices for vegetable oils, cereals, and sugar, accompanied by increased dairy and meat prices. Figure 1 illustrates that, in June 2022, food inflation in South Africa remained lower than food inflation in Zambia, Kenya, Brazil, the USA and the EU. However, food inflation in South Africa showed the third highest month on month increase after China and the EU and may signal a ‘catching-up’ scenario.
