Families are spending over €100 more every month on food when compared to 2020, a newly published study by Caritas Malta shows.

NGO Caritas Malta presented the MiniMEBDL research study for the year of 2022, referring to the Minimum Essential Budget for a Decent Living, which showed a significant increase in food and medicine prices for low-income families.

Director of the NGO Anthony Gatt presented the study to the media on Tuesday morning, which included the prices of essential food and medicine items compiled into a basket.

The study includes prices up till February 2022, which does not include the inflation caused by the Ukrainian conflict, Gatt said.

“Different impacts such as the Covid-19 pandemic were reflected in the studies as well, including items bought specifically for the pandemic,” he said.

University of Malta professor Suzanne Piscopo spoke about the study, which focused on three different types of families; two adults and two dependent children, a lone parent and two dependent children, as well as an elderly couple aged 65 and over. These families were classified as low-income families.

The study identifies and prices a basket of goods and services for these families to be able to live a basic but decent quality of life, Piscopo said.

Compared to the 2020 study, the cost of the food basket increased by 17.75% yearly for two adults and two children, going up from a yearly cost of €7121.38 in 2020 to €8385.60 in 2022, making a €1264.22 increase.

The food basket includes a menu of seven days which is comprised of fresh fruits and vegetables and other food essentials from three different localities: the supermarket, a local fruit and vegetable vendor and the Farmer’s Market in Ta’ Qali.

Due to the different types of families, a lone parent with two children saw a 22.20% increase in the yearly costs, whilst elderly couples experienced a 24.92% increase.

The cost of vegetables and fruits proved to be the cheapest at the Farmer’s Market in Ta’ Qali, (€31.31) whilst the most expensive came from the fruit and vegetable vendors (€37.59).

The medicines and healthcare items basket included a list of basic medicines and other healthcare products a typical family uses, as well as the addition of the Covid-19 protection package, which included items to help protect against the spread of the virus or manage mild symptoms. These included a disposable mask, (one per day per person) sanitizer (six/nine/12 100ml bottles per year) and paracetamol, which included two extra boxes per household per year.

The two adults and two children family experienced a 15.72% yearly cost increase for the medicine and healthcare basket as compared to 2020. Elderly couples were the most affected, seeing a 36.37% increase in this regard.

Moreover, the healthcare basket in addition to the Covid-19 package, saw an even larger increase in costs. Whilst the monthly expenditure for the basket without the Covid-19 package for the average family amounted to €29.60, the addition of the Covid-19 package resulted into the cost increasing to €99.43.

There was an 18% to 25% increase in the cost of the food basket between the two years, with the highest increase being for the elderly couple (25%), Piscopo said.

Piscopo also said that there was a 12% to 36% increase in the medicines and healthcare basket, where elderly couples once again suffered the highest increase. Piscopo said this is due to the lower income the elderly receives.

Piscopo said that with the addition of the Covid-19 related items, it could mean that low-income families refrain from incurring these expenses due to financial hardships.

Caritas also made several recommendations to help with the increase of these prices, which include foodbanks; meaning the setting up of hubs to collect food which is going to waste.

Piscopo also recommended the development of a no-waste food apps which connect low-income families with sources of extra or about-to-expire food which is going to waste, such as in cafes.

Among some of the recommendations, the access to healthy foods was proposed, which included the extension of the FEAD scheme, to include complementary schemes of regular provision of fresh foods and vegetables. Subsidized vegetables and fruit weekly delivery schemes for the elderly was also recommended.

Better access to farmer’s markets was recommended, Piscopo said, adding that there should be an increase in the localities where farmer’s markets are organised, and the addition of direct buses from each main town towards the Ta’ Qali Farmer’s Market on Tuesdays and Saturdays.

Piscopo also recommended the introduction of healthy food prescriptions, which are vouchers for healthy foods prescribed by doctors at the onset of a chronic disease in lieu of an immediate high dose of medication.

Rebates for low-income earners on medicines was also recommended, Piscopo said.

Piscopo said that the study needed to be done to show the increase in prices, in the category of food especially, reflecting also the National Statistics Office’s statistics in this regard.