Latest news with #MervynAbrahams
TimesLIVE
27-06-2025
- Business
- TimesLIVE
Despite VAT exemption, some zero-rated food prices increased in past 12 months
Despite being exempt from VAT, the prices of some zero-rated foods increased by 4.1% over the past 12 months. The latest Household Affordability Index report, compiled by the Pietermaritzburg Economic Justice & Dignity Group (PMBEJD), found zero-rated foods in the household food basket increased by R113.66 (4.1%) from R2,775.45 to R2,889.11 in the year to June. It tracks the prices of 44 basic foods from 47 supermarkets and 32 butcheries in Johannesburg, Durban, Cape Town, Pietermaritzburg, Mtubatuba in northern KwaZulu-Natal and Springbok in the Northern Cape monthly. Basic food items like brown bread, rice, samp, mealie rice, vegetables and fruit are zero-rated for VAT, meaning they are taxed at a 0% rate to make them more affordable for consumers. In May certain offal and tinned or canned vegetables were added to the list. According to the report: in June 2024, 30kg of maize meal cost R301.28 while it cost R351.60 a year later; a 5kg bag of samp rose from R62.11 to R73.14; five litres of cooking oil from R149.75 to R158.65; six cans of pilchards increased from R151.15 to R154.28; and 25 loaves of brown bread rose from R378.66 to R381.01. The report states foods subject to VAT increased by R76.70 (3.1%) from R2,477.32 to R2,554.02. 'Twenty-two of the 44 foods in the total household food basket are subject to VAT. Foods subject to VAT make up 47% of the total cost of the household food basket. VAT on the total household food basket came to R333.13 in June,' the report said. 'This means 6.1% of the household food basket is made up of VAT. A tax of R333.13 is nearly the same cost of an average low-income household's requirement of 30kg maize meal per month. 'The total rand value of VAT on basic food stuffs is very high and removes money from the purse that could be spent on more food.' Overall the cost of a basic nutritional food basket for a family of seven increased by 3.9% (R249.15) from R6,403.10 to R6,652.25. Mervyn Abrahams of PMBEJD said in June families living on low-incomes may underspend on basic nutritional food by a minimum of 18%. As financial and economic circumstances worsen, so too does household health and nutrition. The gap between what women are able to buy and what they need to buy for proper nutrition widens Mervyn Abrahams of PMBEJD Of the 44 foods tracked in the basket, 19 foods increased in price. Foods that increased in price by 5% or more include onions (9%) and beef (5%). 'Households living on low incomes change their purchasing patterns in response to changes in affordability conditions,' said Abrahams. 'On low incomes, women buy the core staple foods first so that their families do not go hungry and for basic meals to be prepared. Where the money remaining is short, women have no choice but to drop foods from their trolleys or reduce the volumes of nutritionally rich foods in their trolleys.' This had negative consequences for health, wellbeing and nutrition, he said. 'As financial and economic circumstances worsen, so too does household health and nutrition. The gap between what women are able to buy and what they need to buy for proper nutrition widens.' The report states that the national minimum wage (NMW) 'is a poverty wage — it hurts workers, it reduces productivity in the workplace, and slows down economic growth. 'The maximum wage of R4,606.40 this June when disbursed in a family of four people is R1,151.60. This is below the upper-bound poverty line of R1,634 per capita per month. Set at such a low level, the NMW works to institutionalise the low-baseline wage regime and lock millions of workers into poverty. 'Small annual increments off such a low wage base (in rand value) — and which do not reflect inflation levels as experienced by workers, nor the actual cost of worker expenses — means that workers on the NMW are getting poorer each year. 'The minimum shortfall on food for a family is 48.5%. After paying for transport and electricity, workers are left with R1,963.43. If all of this money went to food, then for a family of four it would provide R490.85 per person per month. The food poverty line is R796 per person per month.'
IOL News
26-06-2025
- Business
- IOL News
Household food basket sees minor decrease, but relief remains uncertain for South Africans
Pietermaritzburg Economic Justice and Dignity Group (PMBEJD) Household Affordability Index released on Wednesday indicated a slight decrease in the month-on-month: Household Food Basket of R23,46 from May to June 2025 Image: Armand Hough: Independent Newspapers The Pietermaritzburg Economic Justice and Dignity Group (PMBEJD) on Wednesday warned that concerns have grown over affordability despite household food basket seeing a slight dip in June. The PMBEJD released its Household Affordability Index for June on Wednesday, revealing a marginal month-on-month decrease in the average cost of its tracked household food basket, now sitting at R5 443.12. This represents a decrease of R23.46—or 0.4%—from R5 466.59 in May. However, the annual comparison tells a different story: the cost has risen by R190.36 (3.6%) from R5 252.77 in June 2024, raising concerns among civil society groups about the adequacy of such a decrease for struggling households. Video Player is loading. 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Next Stay Close ✕ Mervyn Abrahams, director of the PMBEJD, indicated that out of 44 foods monitored within the basket, 19 saw increases in their prices while 25 experienced declines. Notably, notable hikes included onions with a 9% increase and beef prices, which rose by 5%. Meanwhile, a few foodstuffs did see significant price drops, such as potatoes, which fell by 11%, and butternut, which decreased by 5%. 'Foods in the basket which decreased in price in June 2025 by 2% or more include rice, sugar beans, curry powder, full cream milk, fish, cremora, polony, and brown bread,' Abrahams said. Siyanda Baduza, a researcher at the Institute for Economic Justice (IEJ), said that the small decrease in the price of food will provide some relief. However, Baduza said this will do very little to ease the high cost of living faced by poor households, who now also have to contend with an increase in the fuel levy. 'Many households - almost half, according to the latest General Household Survey - rely on at least one form of social grant, and these remain woefully inadequate. This is especially true for the Social Relief of Distress (SRD) grant, which targets working-age people and is still only at R370 and thus worth significantly less now than it was at R350 in 2020.' Baduza added that similarly, the Child Support Grant, at R560, fell far below the food poverty line (almost R800) and was even further below the cost required to feed a child a nutritious food basket (R1 000). Evashnee Naidoo, Black Sash KZN regional manager, said though Durban in particular saw a decrease of R115.65 month-on-month, food prices do show an increase on an annual basis. 'Whilst there might be reductions in some basic food items, there are increases on other items which continue to challenge and burden middle to low-income households. This, combined with the increase in electricity prices, the nominal decreases in fuel prices, as well as high costs for basic hygiene, fail to reveal any savings in households,' she said. Naidoo added that food insecurity continued to rise and individuals and households were struggling to make ends meet and were even entering into debt to buy food and basic essentials. 'The inadequacy of government policies to cushion people from the impact of global insecurity, as well as a shrinking economy, which exacerbates inequality, poverty, and unemployment in South Africa amplifies Black Sash's call for a Basic Income Support for those aged 18-59 years old, as well as a Social Protection Floor which provides for the basic minimums for all who live in South Africa,' she said. Aliya Chikte, project manager at the Alternative Information and Development Centre (AIDC), said that the marginal decline in food prices in June offered little relief to most South African households struggling to survive on a monthly income of less than R8 000. 'According to Statistics South Africa's Income and Expenditure Survey, over 35% of household spending goes toward essential utilities - housing, water, electricity, gas, and other fuels,' she said. Chikte added that this means that very little is left over to cover the costs of a nutritious diet, resulting in widespread hunger and a simultaneous occurrence of undernutrition, micronutrient deficiencies, and obesity within communities due to the affordability and unemployment crises. BUSINESS REPORT
TimesLIVE
04-06-2025
- Business
- TimesLIVE
Reduce food prices and add food wastage laws, urges anti-hunger movement
With more South African families being forced to cut nutritious food from their plates because of rising costs, advocacy movement United Against Hunger has initiated a nationwide petition campaign to exert pressure on government and retailers to reduce food prices on nutritious best buys. This comes as the latest Household Affordability Index report by the Pietermaritzburg Economic Justice and Dignity Group (PMBEJD) showed a 3.1% year-on-year increase in core staples such as brown bread, cooking oil, maize meal, tea, potatoes, frozen chicken pieces, white sugar and sugar beans. United Against Hunger, which comprises the Nelson Mandela Children's Fund and the Healthy Living Alliance , is demanding through its petition that retailers drop food prices for '10 best buys' including rice, long-life milk, soya, eggs, tinned fish, dried beans, peanut butter, fortified maize meal, maas and lentils. 'These foods are full of protein and energy. That doesn't mean that other foods are not important. These foods could provide high nutritional value at the lowest cost, especially for families living below the poverty line.' The movement also called on government to implement legislation on food wastage in South Africa, saying companies 'can't just throw away fresh food when people go to bed hungry'. 'We demand more public engagement in the government's draft National Food Security and Nutrition Plan. Over the years, many organisations have built public pressure to increase and top up social grants. But even if we get the significant social grant increases we have been demanding, the cost of living will undermine these victories and keep people in poverty. The R370 [grant] is hardly enough to travel to a job interview or start a small business, let alone buy enough food for the month.' According to the Household Affordability Index, core foods are bought first to ensure families don't go hungry. 'When the prices of core foods increase, there is less money to secure other important nutritionally-rich foods, which are essential for health, wellbeing and strong immune systems. These include meat, eggs and dairy which are critical for protein, iron and calcium; vegetables and fruit, which are critical for vitamins, minerals and fibre; and maas, peanut butter and pilchards, which contain good fats, protein and calcium essential for children,' said Mervyn Abrahams of PMBEJD. The data shows that the core foods contribute 54% of the total cost of the household food basket. 'At an average cost of R2,955.34 in May, these foods are relatively very expensive in relation to the total money available in the household purse to secure food. These foods must be bought regardless of price escalations. 'The high cost of core staple foods results in a lot of proper nutritious food being removed off the family plates. The consequences of high costs on the core foods has a negative impact on overall household health and wellbeing, and child development,' said Abrahams. Overall the latest Household Affordability Index report, which tracks the prices of 44 basic foods from 47 supermarkets and 32 butcheries in Johannesburg, Durban, Cape Town,Pietermaritzburg, Mtubatuba in Northern KZN, and Springbok in the Northern Cape, shows that in May the average cost of the household food basket is R5,466.59 — a 2.6% increase from R5,330 a year ago. Foods that increased by more than 5% include potatoes, onions, tea, carrots, butternut, spinach and peanut butter, while items that increased by 2% or more include samp, frozen chicken portions, fish, wors, cabbage, bananas, apples, margarine and apricot jam. Abrahams said food is bought after transport and electricity have been paid for or money set aside. 'PMBEJD calculated that workers' families will underspend on food by a minimum of 45%. In this scenario there is no possibility of a worker being able to afford enough nutritious food for her family.'
eNCA
29-05-2025
- Business
- eNCA
Escalating food prices hit consumers hard
JOHANNESBURG - The cost of essential groceries has increased across the country. That's according to the May Household Affordability Index. It highlights the growing gap between our income and the cost of living, and it's only making the economic picture even bleaker. Mervyn Abrahams from the Pietermaritzburg Economic Justice and Dignity Group says a basket of food with basic essential stuff ads to R5466, which is a 1% increase from a month ago. He says most increases are witnessed in staple foods like potatoes, onions, spinach and chicken. Abrahams has attributed these increases to season changes, fuel prices and retail sector increases.
eNCA
22-05-2025
- Business
- eNCA
We need innovative ways to stimulate economic growth
PIETERMARIZBURG - Finance minister Enoch Gondongwana has finally tabled his budget, at the third time of asking. WATCH | Budget 3.0 | Alarm over rising debt costs A proposed VAT hike forced a delay, largely due to political pushback that rejected the hike. It remains at 15 percent, but the fuel levy goes up in June. The Portfolio Committee on Finance is worried about budget cuts that could affect education, health and bulk infrastructure. Mervyn Abrahams from the Economic Justice and Dignity Group spoke to eNCA.
