2 Major food products are 15% cheaper from April – here’s what to cook with them

Katy Rose

5 years ago

On 1 April 2019, the South African Treasury will implement its annual amendment to the list of products that will be exempt from the 15% Value Added Tax (VAT). This is the first time the list of food has been changed since 1993.

The group of VAT-free foods comprise of 19 basic staples in the South African pantry, and next week two more foods will join the collection; white cake flour and white bread flour.

The full list of foods that are free from government taxation are:

Fresh fruit
Fresh vegetables
Fresh milk
Cultured milk (like amasi or buttermilk)
Milk powder
Diary powder blend
Eggs
Brown bread
Maize meal
Samp
Mealie rice
Dried mealies
Dried beans
Edible legumes and pulses of leguminous plants
LentilsPilchards/sardines in tins
Rice
Vegetable oil
Brown wheat meal
White bread flour
White cake flour

The two added items are slightly different. Bread flour contains more protein and gluten, which is described by bakers as “strong flour”. The higher gluten content makes for chewy, crusty bread loaves. Cake flour or all-purpose flour is better for baking cakes or muffins, and will help make your baking light and fluffy.

ALSO READ: Your one-stop guide to different flours and their functions in baking

For bakers, there is a lot of room for creativity when cooking with ingredients from the VAT free list. While baking without sugar, butter or yeast is tricky – it’s not impossible.

Here’s a list of how to bake for 15% cheaper:

Basic sponge cake

Basic bread dough

Buttermilk and cheese corn bread