Why do the “official” numbers on food inflation state it’s gone up by tiny amounts like 8%, 19%, 11%, etc. but most of the foods I see has gone up by a minimum of 50%, 100%, 80%?

Question

Why do the “official” numbers on food inflation state it’s gone up by tiny amounts like 8%, 19%, 11%, etc. but most of the foods I see has gone up by a minimum of 50%, 100%, 80%?

In: Economics

Answer 1

Because you need a starting point to say that food has gone up or down X % . Officially, most inflation numbers are based on 1 year. When you say you “see” food up by “50%” you’re probably comparing it to pre-covid, which was 4 years ago.