The average cost of a typical full Irish breakfast is higher now than it was 12 months ago, according to the Central Statistics Office (CSO).
Ahead of our national holiday on St. Patrick’s Day, the CSO has compared to cost of our national breakfast between January 2023 and January 2024.
While the bread, butter, and milk for your tea have come down slightly, the fry portion (eggs, tomatoes, pork sausages, rashers and mushrooms), plus the tea bags, have gone up.
The fry is up 3.1% in cost over the 12 months, while the tea and milk together have increased 2.4%.
Notwithstanding the combined 1.8% decrease for bread and butter, the total change for a full Irish is an increase of 2.3% from January 2023 and 2024.
Looking at the prices for each product, an 800g packet of white sliced pan was 3c cheaper in January 2024, at €1.64, than in January 2023.
A half-dozen pack of eggs, meanwhile, increased by 6c over the 12 months, to €2.22.
Meanwhile, a kilogramme of tomatoes was up 25c in January 2024, to €3.72, and a pack of 80 teabags increased by 21c to €3.12.
Looking at the meat, a kilogramme of pork sausages was 10c higher in January 2024 compared to January 2023, while a kilogramme of rashers increased by 12c to €10.78.
The dairy portion of the meal was cheaper in January 2024 compared to 12 months earlier, with a 2L carton of full-fat milk 8c cheaper, at €2.18 this year, and a pound of butter was down 7c to €3.76.
Finally, a kilogramme of mushrooms saw the largest increase, of 31c to €4.28 in January 2024.
CSO on agriculture operating surplus
Also this week, the CSO said that the agricultural operating surplus has declined by 36%, or €1.7 billion, to €3 billion last year.
This is mainly due to a sharp decline in the value of milk and cereals. Milk prices fell by 26% and, when combined with a 4% drop in volumes, the value of milk fell by 30% to €3.5 billion.
Responding to these figures, farm organisations have raised concerns following their publication.
The president of the Irish Creamery Milk Suppliers’ Association (ICMSA), Denis Drennan, said “the dashboard lights are turning red and blinking fast” following a “collapse” in operating surplus.
The president of the Irish Farmers’ Association (IFA), Francie Gorman, said that latest CSO figures highlight the price volatility that Irish farmers are “exposed to” in the current market.