An old supermarket receipt doing the rounds on social media has offered a glimpse into the cost of filling a trolley in New Zealand more than three decades ago.
The Woolworths receipt, dated August 1991, shows a $63.75 shop containing staples including milk, butter, bread, eggs, Weet-Bix, coffee and sugar — and has sparked discussion about just how much grocery prices have changed.
"Wow! Everything was very cheap back then," one Facebook user commented.
Others were struck by the relationship between individual prices.
"It's interesting to see how close butter and bread matched in prices compared to now," another user wrote.
Among the prices was a two-litre bottle of blue-top milk for $2.34, 500g of butter for $1.88 and a 750g box of Weet-Bix for $3.19.
But while the prices might appear cheap by today’s standards, experts say the comparison is more complicated once other factors are taken into account.
What would the same groceries cost today?
1News compared 12 products from the receipt, including milk, butter, cheese, bread, eggs, coffee and Weet-Bix, with their nearest equivalents at Woolworths today. The comparison also accounted for inflation over the past 35 years.
Other items, including meat, were excluded where the receipt did not provide enough information to make a like-for-like comparison.
Those 12 products cost a combined $31.61 in 1991. Adjusted for inflation, that would be equivalent to about $73.57 today.
The nearest equivalent products at Woolworths this week came to $93.17, almost $20 more than the inflation-adjusted 1991 total.
Some products had risen much more sharply than others. A 500g block of butter cost just $1.88 in 1991, or about $4.38 in today's dollars. A comparable block of Anchor butter was listed at $9.70 this week.
A dozen eggs would cost you just $2.70 in 1991, equivalent to around $6.28 in today's money. A comparable branded dozen was priced at $9.99 this week.
Other staple food items followed a slightly different pattern, such as a 750g box of Weet-Bix, which cost $3.19 in 1991, equivalent to $7.42 today. This week's price was actually $6.89.
Sugar was also cheaper than its inflation-adjusted 1991 price, while frozen peas and corn had risen by less than overall food prices.
Why have prices changed so much?
Massey University economics professor Christoph Schumacher said one of the most striking things about the receipt was how unevenly prices had risen.
"Some products have gone up in price a lot more than others. It's not an even spread," he said.
Schumacher said New Zealand's exposure to international markets are one reason, particularly for products the country produces well and which are in high demand overseas.
"The irony is that we have become a victim of our own success," he said.
He said producers were unlikely to sell products for less domestically if they could get a higher price overseas, meaning international demand could flow through to prices at home.
"This happens exactly in the dairy [and] egg kind of industry, where New Zealand products are in high demand because we're very good [at producing them]. The quality is high."
However, international trade could also benefit consumers when products could be produced more cheaply overseas.
"We benefit if something is produced cheaper over there somewhere and we can import it, but at the same time, we pay an additional price if our good products are in high demand overseas."
But what about wages?
The picture changes again when we take wages into account.
The adult minimum wage was $6.125 an hour in 1991, compared with $23.95 an hour today.
That means the $31.61 basket represented just over five hours of work on the minimum wage in 1991.Today, the $93.17 branded equivalent would cost you just under four hours of minimum-wage work.
However, Schumacher cautioned against using those figures to make a blanket assessment of whether groceries were more affordable today.
"There's no yes or no answer to that. It really depends who you're looking at," he said.
He said wages had not risen evenly, and lower-income households typically spent a greater proportion of their earnings on food.
"If you spend 30% of your income already on groceries, a small increase in food prices hits you hard because it covers a big chunk of your income.
"If you're a high-income [earner] and you spend 5% or whatever of your income on food, then the same price increases you probably won't even notice."
For lower-income households whose wages had not kept pace with inflation, he said rising grocery prices could therefore be particularly difficult.
What about cheaper alternatives?
While Kiwis are unable to control food inflation, the comparison showed that product choice could make a significant difference at the checkout.
Choosing supermarket own-brand alternatives where available brought the same 12-item basket down from $93.17 to $70.44 — a saving of more than $22, and slightly below the $73.57 inflation-adjusted cost of the 12 products bought in 1991.
For example, Woolworths' own-brand 500g block of butter was priced at $7.49, compared Anchor's $9.70.
A cheaper dozen eggs was $8.95, compared with $9.99 for the branded option, and a supermarket-brand loaf of bread was $2.12 compared with $4.29 for the branded equivalent.
Schumacher said shoppers could also reduce their bills by changing what they bought depending on specials and seasonal prices.
"If you see something is on special, maybe this week you consume more of that and leave out something more expensive."
He recommended using unit pricing to compare products, particularly when different package sizes made it difficult to tell which offered better value.
"Now, often you see in supermarkets they give a comparison by gram or kilo. Maybe you choose then the one that is better value for money.
"People can absolutely reduce the grocery bill by shopping smart."
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