Photo: Getty ImagesFood prices rose 4% over 2025, Stats NZ, says, and the price of a loaf of bread lifted almost 60%. It has released the latest food price data, which shows that the annual rate of inflation slowed slightly in December, down from 4.4% in the 12 months to November. Simplicity chief economist Shamubeel Eaqub said the bread price increase had been happening for some time. "Bread prices have been increasing for the last year, quite sharply. Because the cost of inputs, particularly wheat, has increased so much we're now seeing the dam breaking and the price of bread increasing at the supermarket aisles."

Source: Otago Daily Times January 15, 2026 23:48 UTC