Irish consumers are spending more dough as pizza prices soar

Pizza prices have risen more than 16 percent in Ireland over the past year, far more than in the pie’s home country of Italy.

Underground data shows consumers in Ireland are having to dig deeper to celebrate National Pizza Day tomorrow, with pizza inflation here slightly above the bloc average.

The price of store-bought pizzas, quiches and other flour-based foods rose 16.1 percent year-on-year in Ireland in December, the EU’s statistics agency said.

According to Eurostat, the average pizza inflation in the EU was 15.9 percent.

Hungary recorded the bloc’s highest pizza and quiche inflation at 46 percent.

Pizza prices rose 10 percent in Italy, with Luxembourg registering the lowest price increases in the EU at 7 percent.

Pizza prices are rising faster than overall food inflation as the cost of basic ingredients, including flour, soar.

Annual food inflation in December was 13.8 percent in the euro-zone-20 and 11.7 percent in Ireland.

Irish flour, bread, pasta and other baked goods saw prices rise well over 10 percent in December, as did meat and fish products.

Milk, egg, butter and margarine prices have seen annual inflation well over 20 percent, while sugar prices have risen by 30 percent.

A survey by children’s charity Barnardos and grocer Aldi this week found nearly a third of parents are skipping meals or reducing portion sizes to ensure their children are getting enough to eat.

One in 10 parents said they have used food banks or received a food donation in the past 12 months, more than double the number in the previous survey.

Food price inflation in Ireland rose to a record 16.3 percent in the three months to January 23, well above food price inflation, according to research group Kantar.

This also reflected a jump from December, when food price inflation was 15.4 percent.

With continued price increases, households are now paying an extra €1,159 on their annual grocery bills this year unless they cut back or bargain.