Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — Six food commodities — chicken legs, taro, ice cream, eggs, mayonnaise and butter — contributed to the decrease in the Basic Food Index (BFI), according to the Commerce Department, which released last week Friday, the February 2019 BFI, which covers the monthly survey of 7 selected major food outlets.

Samoa News received information from consumers saying that some stores were selling a case of chicken legs at very low prices between $7.50 and $9 — which they say is “excellent” as families usually buy this as a bulk item.

The BFI report for February points out that chicken legs recorded the greatest month-to-month decrease of 3.6%, followed by a 2.9% drop in eggs and 1.2% in butter. The cost of taro, ice cream, and mayonnaise also dropped last month.

Food items in which average prices increased were fresh fish, rice, pork spare ribs, milk, sausage, and turkey tails, according to the report, which noted that the cost of milk increased by 1.4% and the rest with minimum percentage increases of less then 1-percent each.

The price of food items not specifically referenced above remained constant from the previous month of January, said DOC.