With payday weekend on our doorstep, and South Africans using any excuse to light up those braai fires, many people’s budgets, combined with soaring meat prices, might mean less on the coals.

This, as meat prices have surged to a 25-month high of 6.6% year-on-year, and up by 2.2% in June 2025.

Meat prices were the biggest driver of food inflation in June, as the annual rate for food & non-alcoholic beverages reached a 15-month high of 5,1%.

Overall, inflation rose to 3.0% in June, up from 2.8% in April and May.

Beef prices in particular have spiked for a third successive month, with high annual and monthly increases recorded for stewing beef, mince and steak. Stewing beef rose by an annual 21,2%, the fastest pace on record since the current CPI series began in January 2017.

It’s being driven by the current foot and mouth (FMD) disease outbreak, which created a short supply crunch due to the inability to slaughter livestock.

The earlier ban on Brazilian chicken imports due to the bird flu outbreak also caused panic in the market, as it is a major source of mechanically deboned meat (MDM), which is used in the manufacturing of products such as polony. South Africa is a net importer of MDM due to a lack of domestic capacity.

Economists say the partial lifting of the Brazilian chicken import ban should ease pressure on prices in the medium term, while the FMD situation remains troublesome with new outbreaks reported in the Free State and persisting in Kwa-Zulu Natal.

Other food categories also saw an uptick in inflation. The annual rates for fruits & nuts and vegetables remained in double-digit territory for a second straight month.

Products that witnessed sharp price increases in the 12 months to June include beetroot, lettuce and carrots. Peanuts, however, were slightly cheaper.

However, lower prices for white rice, hot cereals and cold cereals were recorded. Several dairy products are also cheaper than a year ago. Lower prices were recorded for fresh full-cream milk, fresh low-fat milk and eggs.