Cost of Irish breakfast falls slightly as food price rises begin to ease

Tomas Doherty

A full Irish breakfast has got slightly cheaper for the first time in more than a year, according to a breakingnews.ie analysis of food price data.

The total cost of key ingredients needed for a fry-up fell by 12 cent in June to €34.76. The analysis uses standard product sizes provided by the Central Statistics Office (CSO), such as half-a-dozen eggs or two litres of milk.

Bread, bacon, sausages, butter, milk and tomatoes are all marginally cheaper compared to the previous month, the data shows.

However, the total price is still well above where it was a year ago when the same foods cost €31.48 on average.

The price of brown sliced pan bread is up 8 cent in a year to €1.85, two litres of milk is 28 cent more expensive and a pound of butter now costs €3.75 on average, up 29 cent.

Back bacon is priced at €10.76/kg, up from €9.86 a year ago, while pork sausages cost €6.96/kg, up 52 cent. A half-dozen large eggs cost €2.22 on average in June, compared to €1.88 a year ago.

Overall, breakfast foods are still on average almost 10 per cent more expensive compared to a year ago.

Eggs have jumped by 18.1 per cent over the last 12 months, milk is 14.3 per cent more expensive, while butter rose 11.4 per cent. Tea and coffee prices are up 9 and 8.7 per cent respectively, according to the CSO.

Other surveys also point to slowing price rises in recent weeks, with research company Kantar last month noting the lowest level of grocery inflation seen so far this year.

Emer Healy, senior retail analyst at Kantar, said: "This latest drop in grocery price inflation will be very welcome news for consumers, although it is too soon to say if this is the ceiling as inflation rates are still much higher than we have previously seen".

It comes after many Irish supermarkets reduced the cost of their own brand milk earlier in July, marking the second such cut this year.

Minister for Finance Michael McGrath said last month that a move by Tesco Ireland to reduce prices on 700 items by an average of 10 per cent "could be a significant turning point".

The Government has been under pressure to take action on ensuring high grocery costs are not fuelling supermarkets’ profits, after major retailers announced reductions in the cost of milk, butter and bread in May.

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar had previously suggested there was evidence of profiteering by some companies amid the cost-of-living crisis, though a recently published report indicated this did not apply to groceries.

The Competition and Consumer Protection Commission said in its analysis it had seen no indication to suggest "excessive pricing".

It did state that changes in input prices do not appear to be immediately reflected in retail prices, and that recent falls in input costs may take time to be passed onto consumers.

For the latest updates on the cost-of-living crisis, check out the breakingnews.ie data tracker