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A mother of two says she’s had to serve her kids Weet-Bix for dinner and find “alternative ways to live” as a result of the rising cost of living.
Eileen Witika (Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei), 35, lives in Glen Innes, Tāmaki Makaurau with her partner and children, aged 1 and 9.
“The main thing with the cost of living right now is we’re only just managing to break even,” Witika, who works as a receptionist at a health clinic in east Auckland, said.
“There’s no chance here for us to actually thrive as a young family and grow into our community and have time to seek out a lot of opportunities for my children.”
Esther Ashby-Coventry
Mother of two Eileen Witika, 35, says the rising cost of living has had an impact on her parenting. (File photo)
nib New Zealand’s released its annual state of nation parenting survey last week looking at the experiences of 1200 parents across Aotearoa over a period of escalating living costs.
Annual inflation was 6% in the 12 months to June and rising food costs were the largest contributor to this, up 12.3%.
“Now, what used to cost me between maybe $300 is now like up to $500, just for basic essentials, not even like splurging on treats and stuff, or takeaway foods even,” Witika said.
“That’s what I’m spending a week, and then it’s kind of almost the same amount as the rent that I’m paying for the place we’re staying in. It’s kind of like both my partner and I have to actually have an income over like $700 a week just to survive.”
Reserve Bank of New Zealand
The path back to low inflation – Reserve Bank of New Zealand chief economist Paul Conway. (First published March 23, 2023)
The survey found financial pressures are influencing eating habits, with 64% of Māori eating less or differently as a result and 52% of parents overall.
Among Māori respondents, 39% said they were eating more processed foods compared to 30% of Pākehā. Fresh vegetable consumption had also plummeted with 51% of respondents overall saying they were eating fewer vegetables.
“Noodles is a staple in my household now, as opposed to bread, butter and milk… and Weet-Bix is a staple,” Witika said.
“There have been quite a few times where we’ve had Weet-Bix or cereals for dinner and that’s because there just wasn’t anything else.”
Financial pressures meant 25% of parents were spending less time with their children, and the survey found rising costs were impacting connections to wider communities and friends.
“I will say with constraints, money-wise, we’ve had to create ways of looking at alternative ways to live, like an outside-of-the-box kind of thing,” Witika said.
“For example, weekend activities, sports is quite expensive, and although I would love to have my girls in some kind of sport, I don’t have the money to actually supplement what’s really needed to have them flourish and thrive in that environment,” she said.
“So, it’s always looking for low cost, low energy, low time activities with the kids, and it usually ends up having them on devices for like long periods of time.”
The survey found the cost of living was the top concern parents have for their children’s future.
But for Witika, it’s hard for her to even look ahead when she has so much to deal with in the present.
“Because I’m so consistently on the go, in my head with things to do or figure out… I barely have a chance to actually self-reflect to see how to improve my situation,” she said.
“So future-wise, I actually haven’t thought that far as a parent to my kids, like, as long as they’re happy, safe and warm, I’m doing my job.”
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