The increasing cost of the basic foods required to promote health in Queensland

Abstract

Objective: To assess changes in the cost and availability of a standard basket of healthy food items (the Healthy Food Access Basket [HFAB]) in Queensland over time. Design and participants: A series of four cross‐sectional surveys (in 1998, 2000, 2001 and 2004) describing the cost and availability of foods in the HFAB over time. In the latest survey, 97 Queensland food stores across the five Australian Bureau of Statistics remoteness categories were compared. Main outcome measures: Cost comparisons for HFAB items by remoteness category for the 97 stores surveyed in 2004; changes in cost and availability of foods in the 81 stores surveyed since 2000; comparisons of food prices in the 56 stores surveyed in 1998, 2000, 2001 and 2004. Results: In 2004, the Queensland mean cost of the HFAB was $395.28 a fortnight. The cost of the HFAB was 29.6% ($113.89) higher in “very remote” areas than in “major cities” (P < 0.001). Between 2001 and 2004, the Queensland mean cost of the HFAB increased by 14.0% ($48.45), while in very remote areas the cost increased by 18.0% ($76.93) (P < 0.001). Since 2000, the annualised per cent increase in cost of the HFAB has been higher than the increase in Consumer Price Index for food in Brisbane. The cost of healthy foods has risen more than the cost of some less nutritious foods, so that the latter are now relatively more affordable. Conclusions: Consumers, particularly those in very remote locations, need to pay substantially more for basic healthy foods than they did a few years ago. Higher prices are likely to be a barrier to good health among people of low socioeconomic status and other vulnerable groups. Interventions to make basic healthy food affordable and accessible to all would help reduce the high burden of chronic disease.

Optimisation Modelling to Assess Cost of Dietary Improvement in Remote Aboriginal Australia

“…However these three communities represent the variation that exists in relation to size, remoteness and number of food businesses and services across remote Aboriginal communities. Similar nutrition profiles and socio-economic conditions and disparities in the cost of food exist across Aboriginal communities in remote Australia[4]; [6]. Applying this technique of optimisation modelling over a larger number of communities however is warranted.…”

“…High food costs and low socio-economic position are key determinants of this poor quality diet[3]. Surveys to assess the cost of a defined basket of foods in different states[4]; [5] and the Northern Territory (NT) of Australia[6] have consistently demonstrated relatively higher food costs outside major cities that increase with categories of remoteness[4]. The cost is 49% higher for remote NT communities compared to a provincial city supermarket[6].…”

Measures of the Consumer Food Store Environment: A Systematic Review of the Evidence 2000–2011

“…Of the studies conducting a price comparison between store types, six studies found that larger grocery stores had cheaper prices for healthy food items compared to smaller grocery stores [9, 42, 44, 52, 53, 65] and three studies found that convenience stores and gas stations had higher prices compared to grocery and supermarkets [23, 56, 57] for healthy food items.…”

Food Stress in Adelaide: The Relationship between Low Income and the Affordability of Healthy Food

“…As in many other countries, Australian consumers have had to accommodate to increases in costs of basic food [1]. During the financial years 2007-2008 alone, overall food prices rose by 3.9%, while some basic food prices rose more sharply: cheese by 14.2%, milk by 12.1%, poultry by 11.0%, and bread by 6.8% [2].…”