You might find you have a bit more cash left in your bank account after your next grocery shop if you opt for frozen fruit and vegetables over fresh.
Fresh fruit and vegetable prices have been increasing rapidly in recent months. In February, they were up 17% compared to the same time a year earlier, driven by the price of tomatoes, broccoli and iceberg lettuces.
Fruit and vege inflation lifted to an annual rate of 18% in March before dropping to 9.4% in April.
In contrast, frozen fruit and vegetables are available year-round and are not subject to the same seasonal variation. Stats NZ’s Food Price Index showed the price of a kilogram of frozen vegetables stayed between $3 and $4 for the last 20 years.
At Countdown, 500g of frozen baby carrots was $2.30 on Thursday, while 500g of fresh baby carrots was $2.99.
Cauliflower florets (500g) were also $2.30, while a fresh locally grown whole cauliflower was $4.75.
Whole corn cobs can also now be purchased frozen, with a 100g Select bag costing $4.10, while a Watties bag was $5.30.
There were no fresh corn cobs available.
A 500g bag of Countdown frozen blueberries was $7, and a 1kg bag was $12.50. There were no fresh blueberries available, but 1kg of dried blueberries was $58.90 a kg.
At New World, a 1kg bag of frozen mixed veg and a 1kg bag of peas were both $2.19. Pak ‘n Save was cheaper by 10 cents for the same bag.
It was cheaper to buy a fresh head of broccoli for $2.29 because it was in season.
But when it was out of season, 1kg of broccoli was more than $11 in July last year.
Project lead for Love Food Hate Waste Gel Mathel Lim said it was typically cheaper to opt for frozen fruit and vege over fresh, especially during winter when bad weather and cold temperatures could push the price of produce up.
“The cheaper cost often comes down to the ability to harvest, store, and transport the frozen fruit and vegetables which can be done on a larger scale, and with less time pressure to get the produce to supermarket shelves compared to fresh fruit and vegetables,” she said.
Using frozen instead of fresh also minimised food wastage, therefore saving consumers’ money in the long run, she said.
Registered nutritionist Claire Turnbull agreed frozen fruit and vegetables were just as good as fresh and were “much more affordable”.
“There are such good varieties of frozen fruit and veg these days, there’s something that will work well in every dish.”
Source: https://www.eatthis.com/best-frozen-desserts-weight-loss/
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