As Christmas approaches, New Zealanders across the land are feeling the pinch of rising living costs. Despite this, many are determined to celebrate the holiday with traditional dinners and festive cheer after a long year racked by Covid-19 and a cost of living crisis. Otago Daily Times emergency services reporter Oscar Francis and photographer Linda Robertson visited the Pak’nSave car park in South Dunedin to speak to shoppers about their plans for Christmas dinner and how they are navigating financial challenges this festive season.
"I wouldn’t say it’s impacted my plans, but everything’s a lot more pricey than it was," Ms Reid said. I’ve probably brought a bit less than what I normally do . . . Even for presents this year. I’m a mother of five so I’ve had to put a budget in for the kids this year. I can’t go and get them whatever they want because everything’s too expensive." For Christmas dinner, they would be having "nothing too extreme" — lamb, a grazing platter and a pavlova, Ms Reid said.
"Back home [in the Philippines] we mostly celebrate Christmas Eve," Ms Llanes said. They had brought meat for the barbecue, and chicken liver too — "we like it," she said. Also on the menu would be leche flan for desert, which was made of milk and eggs. "It’s like a custard," Ms Llanes said. While they had complained about the cost of living, at the end of the day "it is what it is," Ms Llanes said.
"They were supposed to have been here two years ago, and then last year with Covid it just didn’t happen," Ms O’Neill said. She bought strawberries, cream, a pavlova and eight sets of jelly. "That’s my orders — easy peasy, isn’t it?" Ms O’Neill said. At the end of the day, she did not really mind what was on the menu. "I don’t care what we eat — it could be a ham sandwich. As long as as the family are all together, that’s the important thing to me." However, the cost of living was making things harder for her. "I had to transfer money from my serious saver into my general — it’s outrageous," Ms O’Neill said.
"We have two meals. A cooked breakfast, which is usually seafood, and a barbecue lunch," Ms Byers said. The family then had lots of leftovers to last them through the rest of the day. They had definitely noticed things getting more expensive, as well as other issues in the aisles. "You can’t get fresh food that’s good quality, like watermelon is hard to find, you can’t find pawpaw. It just means we have more canned or frozen fruit," Ms Byers said.
"Everyone brings something , so it’s not too much on one person," Mrs Clark said. Like many others they had felt a grinch-like pinch in their pockets. "We did a shop on Tuesday as well and thought we’d just top up today and it’s pretty much the same price. But it’s got to be brought, because we’re committed to providing some things," Mr Clark said.
