Although the household food basket cost less in June, it is still too expensive for low-income consumers to afford enough nutritious food.
The household food basket was a little cheaper in June, but many of the items in the basket that add protein to the diets of low-income consumers all cost more than in May, while the basket also cost more than it did a year ago in June 2024.
According to the key data from the June 2025 Household Affordability Index, the average cost for the household food basket was R5 443.12 in June, after a decrease in the average cost of R23.46 (-0.4%). The basket cost R5 252.77 a year ago, an increase of R190.36 (3.6%).
The household food basket is part of the Household Affordability Index compiled by the Pietermaritzburg Economic Justice & Dignity Group from a survey of prices of 44 basic foods from 47 supermarkets and 32 butcheries.
The survey is conducted by women from low-income communities in Johannesburg, Durban, Cape Town, Pietermaritzburg, Mtubatuba in northern KwaZulu-Natal and Springbok in the Northern Cape at shops where they shop for their families.
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Foods in household food basket that cost less or more than in May
On June 19, more of the food items cost more, while 25 food items cost less. Food items in the household food basket that cost more include onions (9%), beef (5%), white sugar (2%), stock cubes (2%), chicken gizzards (4%), chicken livers (2%), beef liver (3%), wors (4%), carrots (2%) and tinned pilchards (2%).
Food items in the household food basket that cost less in June include potatoes (-11%), butternut (-5%), green pepper (-7%), bananas (-8%), rice (-3%), sugar beans (-2%), curry powder (-3%), full cream milk (-2%), fish (-2%), Cremora (-2%), polony (-4%) and brown bread (-3%).
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Different household food basket prices in different areas
In June 2025, the household food basket cost more in Johannesburg, Pietermaritzburg and Mtubatuba, while the household food basket costs less in Durban, Cape Town and Springbok, which decreased in price:
- The Johannesburg household food basket cost R38.38 more than in May and R108.97 more than a year ago.
- The Durban basket cost R115.65 less than in May and R184.39 more than a year ago.
- The Cape Town basket cost R31.95 less than in May and R296.48 more than a year ago.
- The Springbok basket cost R107.51 less than in May and R300.47 more than a year ago.
- The Pietermaritzburg basket cost R96.45 more than in May and R59.35 more than a year ago.
- The Mtubatuba basket costs R27.59 more than in May and R194.23 (3.7%) more than a year ago.
Statistics South Africa’s latest Consumer Price Index for May shows that headline inflation was 2.8% and for expenditure quintile 1 was 4.6%, for quintile 4.1% and for quintile 3 3.7%. Food inflation was 4.4%, while Statistics SA’s Producer Price Index for April 2025 shows agriculture was 4.7%, with products of crops and horticulture at 7.0% and live animals and animal products at 1.2%.
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Workers earn too little to afford nutritious food in household food basket
Mervyn Abrahams, programme coordinator for the group, says the National Minimum Wage is R28.79 per hour, R230.32 for an 8-hour day and R4 836.72 for an average 21-day working month. In June, with 20 working days, the maximum wage for a general worker was R4 606.40.
He says workers work to support their family, and for Black South African workers, one wage typically supports 4 people. Dispersed in a worker’s family of four, it means every family member gets R1 151.60, far below the upper-bound poverty line of R1 634 per person per month.
With the June average cost of a basic nutritional food basket for a family of four persons at R3 809.26, the group, using Pietermaritzburg-based figures for electricity and transport and the average figure for a minimum nutritional basket of food for a family of four, calculates that electricity and transport take up 57.4% of a worker’s wage at R2 642.97.
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Transport and electricity take up more than half of workers’ wages
Low-income workers only buy food after paying for transport and electricity, leaving R1 963.43 for food and everything else. Therefore, the group calculates that workers’ families underspent on food by a minimum of 48.5% as they have R1 963.43 left over after paying for transport and electricity.
Abrahams says with food for the month costing R3 809.26, there is no possibility of a worker being able to afford enough nutritious food for her family. “If the entire R1 963.43 went to buy food, then for a family of four, it would provide R490.85 per person per month, again far below the food poverty line of R796 per person.
In June, the average monthly cost to feed a child a basic nutritious diet was R970.89, while the Child Support Grant of R560 was 30% below the Food Poverty Line of R796 and 42% below the average monthly cost to feed a child a basic nutritious diet (R970.89).
