Prices of main food items consumed by Brazilians have finally started to drop. According to André Braz, coordinator of the Consumer Price Index (CPI) of FGV’s Brazilian Institute of Economics (IBRE), standard prices for rice, beans, steak and French fries became 3.90% cheaper over the last 12 months, on average (between September 2016 to August 2017), according to CPI data. The average prices of all food groups bought in supermarkets was -3.32%.

This result can be explained by the slight increase of 1.47% in meat prices, during the same period. Pinto beans, which are very popular in Sao Paulo, plunged 56.47%, while black beans, which is more popular in Rio de Janeiro and Minas Gerais, dropped 31.08%.

“More favorable weather conditions helped drive pinto bean prices down. This item did not contribute much to the overall results, since beans are not a big part of the household budget, despite being an essential product. The highlight was beef, which accounts for 2% of the household budget by itself – one of the highest among food items. The increase in beef prices (1.47%) was still below the CPI inflation and, therefore, did not represent an actual increase,” said Braz.

Potatoes also showed a steep drop in prices (-48.58%). Rice prices dropped by 5.93%. The items with price increases above the average were onions (28.93%), eggs (3.66%) and cassava flour (3.58%).

According to the economist, Brazilians could still see some price hikes before the end of the year, but nothing that will affect the low inflation trend, which should end 2017 at 3.3%. “Price drops should remain somewhat restrained over the next few months. According to the Broad Producer Price Index (IPA), we should have milder drops and even some increase in the prices of the main food items. However, there’s no evidence that food prices will skyrocket,” he said.

The index is based on price variations among the 11 most popular food items in Brazil’s standard dish, weighed according to each item’s relevance in the household budget, according to the IBGE’s Household Budget Survey (POF).