Food costs soar as supermarkets impose lower prices on farmers

South Africans continue to fork out 150% to 300% more for some basic vegetables at supermarkets, compared with municipal markets, although prices appear to have stabilised at higher levels after recent bad weather hammered crops across the country.

This is among the findings of a new Mail & Guardian food price survey at local retailers in Durban and municipal markets in Durban, Johannesburg and Cape Town over the past week. It showed prices of vegetables, including onions, tomatoes, potatoes, cabbage and carrots, remain as significantly elevated at supermarkets as they were during a similar survey last year, making it still considerably cheaper to shop at markets if one is prepared to purchase in bulk. 

The prices of other basics such as milk, bread, chicken and stewing beef remained stable, with only marginal increases compared with the last survey conducted in September 2023 — except for eggs, which soared by 30%.

The price of tomatoes has more than doubled, not only in supermarkets but also at municipal markets, while the price difference between the former and the latter is as high as 36% and more in some cases.

Per kilogramme, tomatoes cost R28.99 at Checkers, and R29.99 at Woolworths and Pick n Pay, while shoppers would have to fork out R34.99 at Spar in Durban, compared with R15 to R18 at the Durban Municipal Market, R10.87 at the Johannesburg Market and R7.50 to R12.50 at the Cape Town Market. 

Consumers could save significantly on onions at the markets, where prices ranged from R4.62 a kilogramme in Johannesburg to R8.50 at the Cape Town market, while Pick n Pay offered the cheapest supermarket onions at R14.99.

The price of a 10kg bag of potatoes ranged from R90 for second grade (still good quality) to between R100 and R135 for medium and large top quality potatoes, equating to R9 to R13.50 a kilogramme. But, at supermarkets, potato prices ranged from R12.85 a kilogramme when purchased in 7kg pockets at Checkers to R29.99 per kilogramme at Woolworths.

Carrot prices ranged from R13.99 to R19.99 in supermarkets but could be bought three times cheaper at as little as R4 a kilogramme in 10kg bulk bags at Durban Market or at R10 a kilogramme in 3kg packs.

Researchers at the Department of Science and Innovation-National Research Foundation Centre of Excellence in Food Security say they have also found similar big price differences in supermarkets, adding that more space should be made available to expand municipal markets and improve access to affordable food.

“It is shocking how much mark-up supermarkets make on essential foods,” said Marc Wegerif, manager of the Centre for Food Excellence.

“Our price tracking has found that supermarkets are retailing produce like tomatoes, potatoes, and onions at retail prices that are in a range of about 150% to 175% higher than the wholesale prices available at the fresh produce markets. This seems to be enabled by their dominant market position.”

In its Fresh Produce Market Inquiry, the Competition Commis-sion accused supermarkets of using their dominant position to impose lower prices on farmers without passing the savings on to consumers. 

“Street traders, on the other hand, tend to retail at about 75% above the wholesale market prices. The street trader still makes a profit but retails at an average of around 30% less than formal sector retailers on key vegetables,” Wegerif said.

“This means, for example, that we have found street traders selling tomatoes at an average of R9.80 a kilogramme less than the formal sector, an almost R10 a kilogramme saving for the urban family buying tomatoes.”

Wegerif said the end result was that “more than half the population cannot afford a healthy diet and this is resulting in undernutrition [and] also obesity due to eating energy-dense but nutrient-deficient food that is less costly than fresh fruit and vegetables.

“These products are high in sugar, salt and unhealthy fats, resulting in micronutrient deficiencies that are sometimes referred to as ‘hidden hunger’. This is referred to as the triple burden of malnutrition,” he said.

“People in South Africa are not going hungry because food is not there, they are going hungry because they cannot access the food — especially in urban areas. That is because they don’t have enough income to afford the price of healthy food.”

Part of the solution is to have more public food markets and small and micro enterprises such as street traders selling food, he said. 

“This, compared to supermarkets, makes food more accessible, including due to low prices. [It] gives people more options about where to buy and also creates more jobs and livelihoods. This can be enabled by things like urban spatial planning and regulations that make more space for such public food markets and traders.”

The informal sector, in particular street traders, are “doing a good job” of making fresh fruit and vegetables more accessible, Wegerif said.

“The municipal markets’ fresh produce markets are essential to this sector and should be protected and expanded. Direct buying from farmers by street traders is also important, especially in small towns, and could be enhanced if there were more local markets. 

“Small shops and local cafés, including spaza shops, also play an important role, both by stocking food products, and by being willing to extend credit.” 

Wegerif said to take the model beyond fresh produce to, for example, include maize meal and other staples, there would need to be more local milling options and local grain markets. This will need changes to regulations that limit the options for local and smaller-scale milling. 

“The same can apply to meat products, especially from poultry and small stock such as goats and pigs.”

FNB senior agricultural economist Paul Makube said fresh produce prices are also volatile because of seasonal availability, erratic weather that hampers harvesting and crop growth and consumer disposable income.

“The past few years saw a ramp up in the production of fruits due to the expansion and favourable weather that ensured three good years of good seasonal rains. Further, dam levels were replenished and ensured adequate supplies for irrigation — although there were pockets of challenges especially in provinces such as the Eastern Cape.” 

Makube said the horticulture sector survived the El Niño-induced drought conditions unscathed during the 2023-24 season. But Limpopo experienced inclement weather during the winter months with black frost damaging potatoes, tomatoes, avocados and citrus.

“According to Potato South Africa, the black frost damage is about 7.4  million 10kg bags, which will reflect increasingly from September to November, mainly the extra-large and large categories while the medium to small [categories] would be adequate,” he said. “This represents about 3% of South Africa’s average supply of 250  million bags and a 32% loss of an area of about 3  674 hectares surveyed by the industry in Limpopo.”

Floods and strong winds in the Western Cape and Eastern Cape damaged crops and logistics infrastructure, negatively affecting supplies to markets. 

“Consequently, overall citrus export forecasts were lowered by 8.9% from the original estimate at 165.5  million cartons. The natural market response is an upswing in prices and, so far, average potato prices to mid-September 2024 on major markets were up by 21% month-on-month and 12% year-on-year at R9.86/kg,” Makube said.

These prices are now 44% and 58% higher than the year-to-September 2024 and the three-year averages, respectively.

In addition, a cost squeeze caused by elevated animal feed prices, as well as disease — particularly avian flu, which disrupted supplies — resulted in an increase in chicken prices, he said. And prices of produce such as chicken and beef are expected to increase further.

“On the protein side, the trend is a normal seasonal upswing towards the December festive season, but it will not be massive. Potatoes prices will remain elevated due to the recent supply constraints while other vegetables will remain moderate.” 

Makube added that food inflation overall decelerated to 3.9% year-on-year in July 2024, from a 2023 high of 4.4%.

Woolworths, Pick n Pay, Spar and Shoprite Checkers had not responded to questions by the time of publication.