That’s more than minimum wage.

The January 2021 Household Affordability Index has shown that the cost of a basic food basket in South Africa now costs R4 051.20. The Index revealed that items such as sugar, beans, rice, flour and bread have seen price hikes of between 30% and 60%.

The total cost of a basic basket of goods now exceeds the minimum wage in the country. More than half of all South Africans earn only minimum wage, which means basic goods are unaffordable for most. The index tracks food price data from 44 supermarkets and 30 butcheries between September last year and January this year in Johannesburg, Durban, Cape Town, Pietermaritzburg and Springbok.