Vegetable prices remained high due to supply and production disruptions, despite overall inflation falling to a 12-year record low of 3.6% in September.
Prices of vegetables, including onions, cabbage, spinach, tomatoes, potatoes and carrots, rose by 22.1 percent on average in September compared to the same period last year, although overall food price inflation was just 5.1 percent, according to “ Reuters. Data from the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK).
A kilogram of Irish potatoes sold for an average of Sh133.57 in September, up from Sh101.77 in the same month last year, representing a 31.2 per cent increase, according to the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) Consumer Price Index.
The price of a kilo of cabbage and onions also increased by 39.5 percent and 7.6 percent to Sh78.33 and Sh162.62 respectively compared to last year.
Vegetable prices peaked in July with an average price change or inflation rate of 33.3 percent due to supply disruption due to prolonged heavy rains and floods.
“Vegetable inflation peaked around July at 33.3 percent, and the reason for the increase reflects heavy rains and floods in April and May that disrupted supplies of key vegetables including onions, tomatoes and greens,” CBK Governor Kamau Thog noted. .
Prices of key vegetables such as onions, tomatoes and cabbage have fallen only slightly since July after improved supply and higher domestic production, putting pressure on basic food costs.
For example, changes in vegetable prices in September accounted for more than three-quarters of the increase in food price inflation, or 88.2 percent, while the cost of non-vegetarian items rose by 0.5 percent.
Vegetable prices are expected to remain high until the end of 2024, as moderate rains reduce domestic production.
“Respondents to the September 2024 Agricultural Sector Survey expect food prices to decline in October 2024, but some upward pressure is expected on selected plant varieties due to seasonal factors,” Dr. Thug added.
Despite the high household consumption of vegetables, the Office for National Statistics gives greater weight to other food commodities, including milk, bread and beef.
These three food items are among the top 10 items of expenditure by households, along with mobile airtime, matatu prices, house rent, hotel and restaurant meals and beer.
In contrast, the cost of non-vegetarian items such as sugar, wheat flour and milk fell last year, leading to an overall decline in inflation.
For example, a kilogram of sugar cost Sh153.80 on average last month, a decline of 29.7 percent compared to Sh218.78 at the same time last year.
Meanwhile, a 2kg package of wheat flour cost Sh170.24 in September, down 10.4 percent from Sh191 the previous year.
Kenyan households spend an average of 32.91 percent of their income on food and non-alcoholic beverages.