Those who consider yuletide black cakes a must on the dinner table during the season, would do well to savour every crumb this Christmas.

The cost of bought and home-made cakes are expected to show a large increase this year as the retail and wholesale prices of nearly all ingredients have increased this year.

Dedicated black cake makers begin the process months before Christmas.

This year is no exception and some bakers - the homebound, the cottage industry and those who make a large trade of it - have already begun to purchase, en masse, cured fruits that will be soaked from now until December in a variety of rums.

Making a rich black cake was always a bit pricey by local standards but with the increased cost of alcohol, dairy, spices, eggs and dried fruits - it’s now downright expensive.

Dried fruits were the last of the lot to show added costs, increasing at the grocery retail level by up to $3 in some places.

This will raise the price of a regular pack of fruits to around $18 in most groceries.

A single pack is for some home-makers a paltry addition to an average-sized fruit-cake, whilst one and a half packs would be more acceptable.

One vendor from the cottage industry - which many people rely on to provide a cake with all the qualities of a home-baked product - told the Business Express that their prices may be raised by as much as $15 to $20 for a large cake.

This would bring the price to about $140 and for a smaller version to about $80.