Pak 'n Save

Waikato supermarket owners are "blown away" by figures showing a 42.5 per cent rise in food prices since 2000.

The news has prompted Labour consumer spokeswoman Carol Beaumont to call for the Government to encourage more competition in the supermarket sector.

New Zealand grocery prices have risen 42.5 per cent between 2000 and 2009, followed by Australia which pays 41.3 per cent more, Britain's prices rose 32.9 per cent and America's were up 28.4 per cent, according to a study out yesterday.

Pak `n Save Mill St owner Glenn Miller said he was trying to obtain a grocery bill from nine years ago as he and his staff doubted the cost of many grocery items had risen to that extent.

He said a can of spaghetti cost 90c in 2000 and now customers would pay $1.09 for the same can. "At Pak n Save the margin we enjoy is lower than many other countries in the world and we think we are still very competitive given manufacturing cost and we try and keep our overheads down," said Mr Miller, who believes Pak `n Save is extremely competitive.

Vege King owner Swaran Singh said prices at his Fairfield fruit and vegetable shop would have risen by up to 10 per cent at the most. In some cases prices had not changed. He said the price tag on asparagus had stayed at $3.99 since 2000.

Progressive Enterprises, which owns Countdown, Woolworths and Foodtown, blamed international events such as drought as the main drivers of food inflation. Progressive spokesman Bill Moore said the group was consistently striving to offer the best prices and its profitability had remained at between 3 and 4 per cent since Australian-owned Woolworths Limited purchased Progressive four years ago. The group said there was plenty of competition between supermarkets, delis, butchers, green grocers and bakeries.

But Ms Beaumont has questioned why New Zealand is not following the example of Australia's Competition Minister, Craig Emerson, whose government was taking "hard measures" and lowering the barriers to other retailers competing with Coles and Woolworths on that side of the Tasman.

She was critical of Consumer Affairs Minister Heather Roy's suggestion that New Zealanders "shop around" to combat some of the fastest-rising food prices in the developed world, saying it had attracted widespread criticism. It was "poor advice" to families struggling with soaring food bills, Ms Beaumont said.

Public comments on news websites and on talkback radio produced a stream of consumers critical of grocery pricing, with many calling for overseas chains such as Aldi and Costco to compete against New Zealand's Foodstuffs (which owns Pak `n Save and New World) and Progressive Enterprises.

Hamish Wilson, of Consumer New Zealand, said there had been some attempts by other companies, such as The Warehouse, to break into the supermarket sector "but it's pretty difficult". The controversy arose in the wake of the Australian study which says the price of food in New Zealand has risen faster than in any other OECD country other than Korea.

- With NZPA

Seeking a new challenge, Blenheim couple Jo and Jack Stafford are moving south to take up the reins of Kaikoura New World.

The couple, who currently co-own Blenheim New World with Mrs Stafford's sister Andrea Boock and her husband Mark Elkington, take over the store from owners Jason and Joanne Williams on August 4. From then Ms Boock and Mr Elkington will be the sole owners of the Blenheim store.

"Kaikoura came up for sale and we just thought it was a great challenge and a great opportunity for us," Mrs Stafford said. The couple make the southward move at the end of the month, along with their 10-month-old baby daughter, Charlotte. "We're excited about moving to Kaikoura and getting involved in the community and being part of the small-town spirit," Mrs Stafford said.

The Williams', who have owned the Kaikoura New World for about five years, are moving to Timaru to take over the town's PAK'nSAVE store at the end of August. Six-and-a-half years ago the couple owned Kaikoura's Four Square for about 18 months.

At this point Mrs Stafford said she and her husband did not have any changes planned for the Kaikoura store and the takeover would not bring any noticeable differences for shoppers. "It will be really nice to eventually make our own mark on the store with maybe some different products, but for now it'll stay as is," she said.

Supermarkets are in the Boock family's blood as Mrs Stafford's parents, Bruce and Maria Boock, bought the Blenheim New World in 2000 before handing it on to their daughters and their husbands earlier this year. Mrs Stafford's paternal grandparents started the family in the industry with a Four Square supermarket in Dunedin in the 1970s. Much of her extended family on her father's side are either working or have worked in the family supermarkets or in supermarkets of their own. "So in my family, instead of falling out of cots, we fell out of shopping trolleys," she said.

Although the couple were looking forward to the move, Mrs Stafford said it would be tinged with a little sadness. "It will be sad to say goodbye to Blenheim with all our family and friends here. Also our staff, they have been a huge part of our lives."