Doing our weekly shop yesterday and the Mrs noted we only had half a block of cheese remaining. Head to the cheese section and the cheese we buy has been increased upto 220 baht I think it was. Shock and dismay at this, this is nearly 40 baht increase from an avg price of 170/185 baht over the last 3 years.

 

It's the most popular brand comes in different strengths red/blue etc. Looks like a typical English cheese. Is a cheddar and a decent cheese for here.

 

I am sorry to say but I could not buy it the increase was just outrageous.

 

I see some nookie bear guy selling double the size (1kg) for 200 baht but he's in nong khai. I am tempted to buy bulk.

I tried bulk when oz cheddar was selling at a store for silly 1kg price but was sleep walking to the fridge at all hours craving it so it didnt work out

29 minutes ago, Rc2702 said:

It's the most popular brand comes in different strengths red/blue etc. Looks like a typical English cheese. Is a cheddar and a decent cheese for here. 

Sounds like 'Mainland cheddar' to me. I like the vintage cheddar version, the rest taste like rubber.

I know the cheese your talking about (a Kiwi brand ) works out to be 750 bht a Kg

I would only buy it for special things

Now I have turned to 1 Kg Cheddar for 370 bht at the big retailers (shop owners ) stores 

It's still ok for what I use it for

 

Edited July 1, 20188 yr by BEVUP

3 minutes ago, ukrules said:

Sounds like 'Mainland cheddar' to me. I like the vintage cheddar version, the rest taste like rubber.

The red packet I think. Same as us then.

 

But the increase is just ridiculous.

The interesting thing about cheese is that if you buy a 'whole cheese' it's much cheaper.

 

There's no VAT for a start and I also believe the per KG price is lower, probably based on the reduced need to cut it up and package it into smaller units.

1 minute ago, ukrules said:

The interesting thing about cheese is that if you buy a 'whole cheese' it's much cheaper.

 

There's no VAT for a start and I also believe the per KG price is lower, probably based on the reduced need to cut it up and package it into smaller units.

Vat does not apply when importing cheese into thailand?

 

10 minutes ago, Rc2702 said:

Vat does not apply when importing cheese into thailand?

 

That's interesting 

So what makes a Pizza expensive here 

11 minutes ago, Rc2702 said:

Vat does not apply when importing cheese into thailand?

 

I don't know but you don't pay it if you buy the whole cheese at somewhere like Makro. I read that on here a year or two ago and when I checked the next time I was in Makro the price of a full Danish Blue was quite a bit cheaper than a segmented one.

 

Just now, BEVUP said:

That's interesting 

So what makes a Pizza expensive here 

I've always wondered that. Mozarella is one of the cheapest and easiest cheeses of them all to make.

It's a farang tax as Thais eat very little cheese.  (Not even mozzarella despite all those buffaloes)

23 minutes ago, ukrules said:

The interesting thing about cheese is that if you buy a 'whole cheese' it's much cheaper.

 

There's no VAT for a start and I also believe the per KG price is lower, probably based on the reduced need to cut it up and package it into smaller units.

 

There's a lot of interesting packaging for people who don't eat enough to warrant buying whole blocks. The industry has come a long way. I like the slices in a resealable pack. 

Yes, it's "Mainland" from New Zealand with different sorts/ages.

(Vintage, Tasty, Epicure, Swiss, ...).

Prices at Makro were below 180, now 204 or so.

Even higher at Lotus (before like 186 now 210).

It's one of my regular items

But the price is still competitive (1kg 840) compared to the real goodies from Switzerland or France (>1500 ... >2000).

So I have to swallow the new price.

 

"Vintage" from the BigC catalogue, 209 Baht:

 

Edited July 1, 20188 yr by KhunBENQ

Also been at 220 at Lotus for nearly two weeks now.

I buy my 80 slice packet in Macro for under 400 Bt. ..Does me fine for a sandwich.

13 hours ago, BangkokSausage said:

I tried bulk when oz cheddar was selling at a store for silly 1kg price but was sleep walking to the fridge at all hours craving it so it didnt work out

Ain't that just too true !

 

FWIW, even here in New Zealand where the cheese comes from, the price of Mainland cheese recently went up also.  A 1kg block of Mainland Tasty cheddar now runs $NZ12.49 which is about 280 baht.  (And if that sounds cheap compared to what you pay for the same product in Thailand, only a few weeks ago it was $10.99 for the 1 kg pack!)  The Vintage has been out of stock since late last year - but should be back in stock this month.

Edited July 2, 20188 yr by mstevens

Something is going amiss with cheese at the moment, the brands that I think you are referring to have totally disappeared from the Tesco online shopping site too.

check out SIAMSBURYS ?  they have some good cheese bargains sometimes, on facebook

11 hours ago, KhunBENQ said:

Yes, it's "Mainland" from New Zealand with different sorts/ages.

(Vintage, Tasty, Epicure, Swiss, ...).

Prices at Makro were below 180, now 204 or so.

Even higher at Lotus (before like 186 now 210).

It's one of my regular items

But the price is still competitive (1kg 840) compared to the real goodies from Switzerland or France (>1500 ... >2000).

So I have to swallow the new price.

 

"Vintage" from the BigC catalogue, 209 Baht:

 

About 13 year ago they were in the 60 to 70 Baht range.   Has cheese been hit by the same tax / duty increase that bumped butter up dramatically a few months back or is it part of the lack of supply of cheese problem that hit Europe earlier this year ? 

My Favourite cheese. Tops are currently selling it at 199 if you have the One Card.

So is this what we call a imbalance in trade?  Imported Cheese with a 40% imported tax? a Monopoly? 

I love cheese too but learn to live without it until I'm able to get back home for a visit then I load up. 

I love Cherries, recently was at Big C,  1 KG was 1500 baht for the U.S. 

I didn't vote for him but where is Trump when you need him??

8 minutes ago, thailand49 said:

So is this what we call a imbalance in trade?  Imported Cheese with a 40% imported tax? a Monopoly? 

I love cheese too but learn to live without it until I'm able to get back home for a visit then I load up. 

I love Cherries, recently was at Big C,  1 KG was 1500 baht for the U.S. 

I didn't vote for him but where is Trump when you need him??

 

interesting. thai products are taxed much much less entering the usa yet usa products entering thailand are taxed through the roof.  not fair. in this instance the usa could easily posture to significantly tax thai products as a way to motivate thailand to reduce their tariffs. the us market is huge for thai products.

 

as a side note vientam given their history with france does produce some decent cheese and the price is affordable. would like to see that entering thailand free of import tax per asean.

Edited July 2, 20188 yr by atyclb

I also noticed the price hike and didn't buy.

 

First it was wine now cheese.

 

Is this an oblique government crackdown on wine and cheese parties that have been creating mayhem the length and breadth of the country ?

1 minute ago, atyclb said:

 

interesting. thai products are taxed much much less entering the usa yet usa products entering thailand are taxed through the roof.  not fair. in this instance the usa could easily posture to significantly tax thai products as a way to motivate thailand to reduce their tariffs. the us market is huge for thai products.

Recently,  it was reported that the trade deficit with Thailand is reaching 15 Billion and growing.  Yes, I see many of the Thai products at home particularlty their rice is basically coming in for free. 

You go into a market like Tops, Food land, you see the big difference in pricing with anything that is imported.  It kind of make sense looking at the shelf if you ever taste something made overseas compare to Thai if the price was even close even a Thai would by pass their own product the country would go broke.

 

Time to get a makro card and go shopping for the 2 kilo blocks    

1 minute ago, Denim said:

I also noticed the price hike and didn't buy.

 

First it was wine now cheese.

 

Is this an oblique government crackdown on wine and cheese parties that have been creating mayhem the length and breadth of the country ?

 

i have noticed changes at big c. example the casino brand frozen pizza took a big price hike though the baht-euro exchange rate had no significant changes.

 

i noted casino products sold in cambodia did not increase in price.

 

also the markdown food used to start at 50% price now significantly higher.

 

i suspect big c management trying to capitalize on foreigners living in thailand. 

3 minutes ago, LomSak27 said:

Time to get a makro card and go shopping for the 2 kilo blocks    

2kg of cheese would be a challenge..... 

How long can you make it last? 

Italian Gorgonzola...108 grams cost 300 baht in Tesco when checking the price tag ….I just smiled as I brought my supply from my recent trip ...costed  17 € a  kg in home country , brought  also my chocolate 10 kg supply and many other things ….

7 minutes ago, atyclb said:

 

i have noticed changes at big c. example the casino brand frozen pizza took a big price hike though the baht-euro exchange rate had no significant changes.

 

i noted casino products sold in cambodia did not increase in price.

 

also the markdown food used to start at 50% price now significantly higher.

 

i suspect big c management trying to capitalize on foreigners living in thailand. 

I saw lately a study  that predicted by 2022 the costs of living in s.e.a. would be equal to central Europe country's….. cost of living not they specified the people earnings ...time to start packing if true