Households may have to spend up to €780 more on groceries over the coming year compared to 2021.
Staples like bread, milk, pasta, tea and butter rose by up to a third in price last month.
A new report has shown that the cost of general groceries rose by 5.5% in Ireland throughout 2021, with retail experts saying further price hikes are coming.
The data, published by the Central Statistics Office, showed that the price increase recorded last year was one of the largest jumps in Ireland in 20 years. The report further showed that the highest increase happened throughout December.
Looking at consumer prices across stores in Ireland, the CSO report presented that there was a steady increase in most household items.
The research showed that the price of staples such as bread, milk and butter rose by 10 to 30 cent throughout recent weeks. The price of bread on its own increased by 5.3% throughout 2021.
Butter, which was included in the “oils and fats” category, saw an increase of 4.4%, along with different cooking oils.
Pasta went up by 6.4% in price while poultry has increased by 3.5%.
Drinks have also seen price hikes with coffee growing by 2.5% and tea steadily increasing by 1.9% throughout the year.
These percentage increases show that the average price of a weekly shop has gone up by €15, which could lead an annual increase of €780.
Supermarkets have suggested that inflation may be the leading cause of increases.
But a Lidl spokesperson insisted that they were doing “everything possible” to keep prices at a minimum for consumers.
While Aldi’s John Curtin said that the “costs of ingredients and commodities have increased significantly".
Utility bills have also shot up with inflation, by over €500.
Fuel prices remain close to the highest levels ever recorded.
AA Ireland’s figures show that the average national price of petrol is currently 170.3 cents per litre, while diesel stands at 160.5 cents per litre on average.
Anna Cullen from AA Ireland said: “Looking at the figures for January 2021, the average price of fuel stood at 120.8 cents for diesel and 129.9 cents for petrol.
“This means the price of petrol has increased by 31% in the past year, and there has been a 33% increase in the price of diesel.
“The prices this month are on par with December 2021, with a negligible decrease of about 1%. They are down by 1.5% on November figures, when AA Ireland reported record high fuel prices.
Meanwhile, a seperate report shows Ireland is the 16th most expensive country in the world.
According to price-comparison website Numbeo, Ireland’s 2022 ranking of 16th shows a three-place drop.
While being cheaper than Switzerland, Norway and Australia, Ireland is significantly more expensive than the UK, US, France and New Zealand.
Bermuda gained the top spot as the most expensive country, while Pakistan was reported as the least expensive.
