Cost is a major influence on the selection of foods. Some people believe that healthier foods are more expensive than their less healthy counterparts. Monitoring food prices provides data to enable advocacy for fiscal policies to make healthy food more affordable.
| Indicator | Result | Previous | Assessment* | What was measured? | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Overall spending on discretionary foods** |
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Current spend on discretionary** foods, beverages and takeaways, as a proportion of current diet cost |
Total population: 36% |
Cost of total, healthy and discretionary** components of the current diet, modelled based on intake reported in the 2008/09 Adult Nutrition Survey and the 2002 Children’s Nutrition Survey, for a family of two adults and two children for a fortnight (2016). |
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Cost of healthy diets*** relative to current diets |
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Cost of a healthy diet versus the current diet for: |
Cost of the recommended healthy diet modelled to meet the NZ Eating and Activity Guidelines, for a family of two adults and two children for a fortnight, compared with the current diet (2016). |
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3.5% cheaper |
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0.57% cheaper |
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4.5% cheaper |
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Cost of 6 common healthy home-made meals compared to takeaways |
32% cheaper |
Average cost of 6 frequently consumed takeaways (chicken meal, fish and chips, butter chicken, beef chow mein, burger & pizza) compared to a similar homemade meal (November 2015- March 2016). |
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|
8% cheaper |
As above. The cost of time was calculated at the minimum wage of $NZ15.25/hour. |
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Cost of a healthy diet as a proportion of income for: |
Cost of the recommended healthy diet as a proportion of income in three population groups by income scenario (2016). |
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18.7% |
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32.8% |
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51.0% |
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Cost of healthy, sustainable diets |
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Climate impact (greenhouse gas emissions) of the
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20-year global warming potential^:
|
Four dietary scenarios were modelled for a household of four (two adults, two children) for a fortnight (2019). |
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Change in prices of healthier and less healthy foods over time^^ |
No difference between trends |
The price of selected foods in the Food Price Index from July 2014 to June 2021 |
How healthy are Aotearoa New Zealand’s food environments? (2021) |
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Price promotions |
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Proportion of all food and beverage price promotions in supermarket flyers that are for junk foods^^^ |
32% |
Food and beverage price promotions in supermarket flyers available online during 2020 |
How healthy are Aotearoa New Zealand’s food environments? (2021) |
*Green = ‘promotes health’; Orange = ‘needs improvement to promote health’; Red = ‘unhealthy’. For criteria, refer to the Indicator Assessment Criteria at the bottom of the page.
** The Australian Dietary Guidelines defines discretionary foods as those that are nutrient-poor and not necessary for a healthy diet.
*** The current diet was modelled to include the foods and drinks for a reference household of two adults and two children for a fortnight, based on intakes reported during the most recent national nutrition surveys. The healthy diets were modelled to include the foods and drinks for the same reference household for a fortnight, but was based on the NZ Eating and Activity Guidelines. The healthy diets did not include alcohol, takeaways or discretionary foods.
^100-year global warming potential figures are a commonly used measure of greenhouse gas emissions. 20-year global warming potential figures incorporate short-lived but more highly potent greenhouse gases such as methane (a large pollutant from agriculture).
^^ Categorised as healthy or less healthy according to the WHO Europe nutrient profile model.
^^^ The definition of ‘Junk food’ was developed for INFORMAS modules based on the definition of occasional food from the Food and Beverage Classification system. Includes sugar-sweetened beverages.
Key Recommendations
In order to consume a healthy diet, policies are required to lower the cost of healthy food or ensure that households have sufficient income after fixed expenses to purchase nutritious, acceptable and safe food.
Continued comprehensive monitoring of food environments, including national assessment of diet costs and affordability, is essential to inform and support policy action to improve population diet and reduce the burden of non-communicable disease in Aotearoa New Zealand.
For more information
Reports
How healthy are Aotearoa New Zealand’s food environments? 2021 Full Report
Articles
Mackay S, Buch T, Vandevijvere S, Goodwin R, Korohina E, Funaki-Tahifote M, et al. Cost and affordability of diets modelled on current eating patterns and on dietary guidelines, for New Zealand total population, Maori and Pacific Households. Int J Environ Res Public Heal. 2018 Jun 13;15(6):1255. doi: 10.3390/ijerph15061255.
Mackay S, Vandevijvere S, Xie P, Lee A, Swinburn B. Paying for convenience: comparing the cost of takeaway meals with their healthier home-cooked counterparts in New Zealand. Public Heal Nutr. 2017 Sep;20(13):2269-2276. doi: 10.1017/S1368980017000805.
Kidd B, Mackay S, Vandevijvere S, Swinburn B. Cost and greenhouse gas emissions of current, healthy, flexitarian and vegan diets in Aotearoa (New Zealand). BMJ Nutr Prev Heal. 2021 Jun 9;4(1):275-284. doi: 10.1136/bmjnph-2021-000262.
| Indicator Assessment Criteria | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Metric | |||
Current spend on discretionary** food and drinks as a proportion of current diet cost |
< 5% |
5 – 29% |
≥ 30% |
Cost of a healthy diet relative to the cost of the current diet |
The recommended (healthy) diet is less expensive than current (unhealthy) diet |
No difference in price |
The recommended (healthy) diet is more expensive than current (unhealthy) diet |
Cost of healthy home-made meals compared to takeaways |
Healthy home-made meals are cheaper than takeaways |
No difference in price |
Healthy home-made meals are more expensive than takeaways |
Cost of a healthy diet as a proportion of income |
< 25% |
25 – 29% |
≥ 30% |
Change in prices of healthier and less healthy foods over time~ |
Healthier foods increasing in cost at a lower rate than unhealthy foods |
No difference in trends |
Healthier foods increasing in cost at a higher rate than unhealthy foods |
Proportion of all food and beverage price promotions in supermarket flyers that are for junk foods |
0% |
1 – 50% (fewer junk food price promotions than for other foods) |
> 50% (more junk food price promotions than for other foods) |
~ It is expected that prices of all foods will increase over time with inflation.