Throughout the past five months, the Pietermaritzburg Economic Justice & Dignity Group (PMBEJD) has been tracking the cost of groceries in South Africa. It has released the January 2021 Household Affordability Index, which shows that the average cost of the household food basket has increased. The affordability Index tracks food price data from 44 supermarkets and 30 butcheries in Johannesburg, Durban, Cape Town, Pietermaritzburg and Springbok. The data shows the average cost of the Household Food Basket is R4051.20. In this conversation, Thabiso Kotane speaks to independent economist Ntombana Mbele and Mervyn Abrahams, programme coordinator at the Pietermaritzburg Economic Justice and Dignity Group to unpack the data.