Cannelloni

• Food and non-alcoholic drinks rose by 7.9% in the year to May, with biggest increases in dairy products (15.1%), breads and cereals (12.8%) and processed foods (11.5%).
• Meat costs rose by 3.8%, but the absolute increase was high, with a kilo of fillet steak costing up to A$60 for a kilogram.
• Australians spend around 15% of their weekly food budget on meat and half that (7.4%) on dairy products.

Meat

• Meat is a good source of protein, iron, zinc and vitamin B12.
• Recommendations are for a maximum of three serves of cooked lean red meat a week.
• This includes beef, lamb, veal, pork, or kangaroo, with a serve being 65g cooked, which equates to 90–100g raw.
• Read more:
  Love meat too much to be vegetarian?

Dairy

• Dairy products are important sources of protein, calcium, magnesium, zinc, potassium and vitamins A, B2 and B12.
• Australian recommendations are for two to three serves a day for adults and four serves for women over 50.
• Fresh milk costs between $1.50 and $3.00 per litre depending on type and brand, while UHT milk is cheaper, about $1.60 per litre.
• It’s even cheaper to buy powdered milk ($10 per kilogram pack, which makes ten litres), equating to $1 per litre.
• Block cheese ranges from $15 to $30 a kilogram, while packets of pre-sliced cheese vary from $18 to over $30.

3 tips to save on your food bills

• Have a household food budget Ensure everyone is on the same page about saving money on food and drinks.
• About 50% of household food dollars are spent on takeaway, eating out, coffee, alcohol, food-delivery services and extras, so have a budget for discretionary food items.
• Your household might need an incentive to stick to the budget, like voting on which “discretionary” items food dollars get spent on.
• If you need food help right now, the Ask Izzy website can locate services in your area.