(Kaieteur News) – In what has become a familiar refrain during spikes in household expenses, President Irfaan Ali announced on 18th August that his administration is considering establishing permanent farmers’ markets across the country to cushion the rising cost of living.

“We may need to look at the creation of farmers’ markets across the country as a permanent part of our buying ecosystem, so that farmers have direct access to the market,” President Ali told a news conference. He noted that agricultural producers continue to complain that products are being sold at substantially higher prices once they reach consumers, suggesting that expanding farmers’ markets would allow producers more direct access to consumers and reduce costs and mark-ups along the supply chain.

Despite these repeated announcements spanning multiple budget cycles, household budgets remain under pressure. Official figures from the Georgetown Consumer Price Index (CPI) for July 2026 showed an overall monthly inflation movement of 0.1% to reach an index of 153.58. While the broader food category experienced a slight deflationary movement of 0.03% for the month from June to July, driven by drops in fruits (4.2%) and pulses (2.7%), several essential food sub-categories continued to experience price increases, including condiments and spices (2.6%), non-alcoholic beverages (0.5%), oils and fats (0.4%), cereals (0.2%), meats and fish (0.2%), and vegetables (0.2%). Over the past 12 months, the food category as a whole has risen by 5.1%, alongside overall CPI growth of 3.9%.