Butter, eggs and bread prices have more than doubled over the past decade in New Zealand, rising at twice the rate of wage growth, according to Stats NZ data cited by Westpac senior economist Satish Ranchhod. Butter prices have jumped 157 percent since 2016 while wages rose 52 percent; eggs are up 125 percent, bread up 120 percent, and fresh fish now costs $49.62 a kilogram on average.

Ranchhod said strong global demand for protein and rising production costs — including fuel, transportation and packaging — are pushing prices higher and will likely keep them elevated. "We've still got pretty high fuel costs," he said, noting further increases are expected. Simplicity chief economist Shamubeel Eaqub warned that food prices will continue rising even as inflation slows. "Slowing inflation rates don't actually mean anything to somebody who's paying still a ton of money for the basics," he said, RNZ business (NZ) reports.