Rice Roti Rate: Cost Of Home-Cooked Veg Thali Rises, Non-Veg Falls In December

The cost of home-cooked non-vegetarian thali fell year on year in December due to lower poultry prices, but vegetarian thali was up on dearer onion and tomato.

Poultry relief

On-month basis, the cost of representative home-cooked veg and non-veg thalis fell 3% and 5%, respectively, in December, as per CRISIL MI&A Research estimates:

• The easing was due to a 14% and 3% on-month decrease in prices of onion and tomato, respectively, with the festive season coming to an end
• The cost of the non-veg thali declined faster due to a 5-7% on-month decline in the price of broilers, which account for ~50% of the cost

The CRISIL data also revealed the ingredients (cereals, pulses, broilers, vegetables, spices, edible oil and cooking gas) driving the change in the cost of the thali.

On-year basis, however, the cost of the veg thali rose 12%, while that of the non-veg thali declined 4%:

• The rise in veg thali cost was led by a substantial increase of 82% and 42% in the prices of onion and tomato, respectively.
• Prices of pulses, which account for ~9% of the veg thali cost, also increased 24% on-year
• The decline in the cost of the non-veg thali was due to ~15% decline in broiler prices on-year amid higher production

CRISIL’s monthly indicator of food plate cost

The average cost of preparing a thali at home is calculated based on input prices prevailing in north, south, east and west India.

The monthly change reflects the impact on the common person’s expenditure.

November CPI Inflation

In November, the most recent government data indicated a 5.55 percent increase in consumer prices, compared to 4.87 percent in October. A notable rise in the prices of vegetables, fruits, pulses, and sugar primarily fueled this uptick.

Consequently, CPI inflation reached a three-month peak in November, reversing the declining trend observed in the preceding three months.

The impact of deflation in fuel and other related sectors played a role in mitigating the overall inflationary pressures.

Specifically, consumer food price inflation rose to 8.7 percent in November, up from 6.61 percent in October.