Wellington, Dec 13 (IANS): New Zealand's food prices were 10.7 per cent higher in November 2022 compared with the same month in 2021, the statistics department Stats NZ said on Tuesday.

Food prices increased 10.1 per cent in October 2022 compared with October 2021, reports Xinhua news agency citing the department as saying.

In November 2022, the annual increase was due to rises across all the broad food categories measured.

Compared with November 2021, grocery food prices increased by 10 per cent; fruit and vegetable prices increased by 20 per cent; and meat, poultry, and fish prices increased by 12 per cent, Stats NZ said.

"Increasing prices for cheddar cheese, yogurt, and standard two-liter milk were the largest drivers within grocery food," said consumer prices manager James Mitchell.

The second-largest contributor to the annual movement was fruit and vegetables, with potatoes, onions, and bananas influencing this movement the most, Mitchell said.