TVNZ's Breakfast went grocery shopping with middle-income earner, and Porirua resident Wiremu Bayliss to find out how much it costs to provide for his family of five.
Wiremu Bayliss lives in a rental property in Porirua with his wife and three young children.
"I’d put ourselves in a middle-income level," Bayliss said.
Bayliss would usually budget between $150 - $200 for his weekly grocery shop, but due to rising food prices, his usual shop is now just under $400.
"It just means that adjustments will have to be made at another end," Bayliss said.
According to Statistics NZ, food prices in New Zealand have risen 7.6% in the last year - the highest annual increase in over a decade.
"It affects all of us, you know, lower-income, middle-income, you know it affects all of us to some degree," Bayliss said.
On Thursday, New Zealand’s inflation rate hit 6.9%, the largest movement since June 1990.
Bayliss said to cook a classic Sunday roast for his family, is a "luxury, and too much."
For a 3-pack of Watties baked beans from Countdown in Porirua, it currently costs over five dollars.
"I remember buying this about three weeks ago, and it was $3.80," Bayliss said.
Finance Minister Grant Robertson said earlier this week that inflation was impacting many countries and that the cause was driven by supply chain constraints, the impacts of Covid-19 and the war in Ukraine.
Bayliss told Breakfast that the cost of living keeps him awake at night.
"It’s not just about the financial side, it’s the mental health side of things as well," he said.
After Wiremu is paid his fortnightly income, he said 40% is used for rent payments, and between 30-40% is used for living expenses.
"I’ve even frozen my KiwiSaver at this point," Bayliss said.
"It’s hard because we know that there are others out there struggling more than us," he said.
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