Certain economic formulas are pointing to a Federal Reserve interest rate hike as early as this year, a Fed official said on Thursday, according to Dow Jones.

"As I look at some of the policy prescriptions that the Federal Reserve relies on, looking at formulas that help guide you on when it's time to change, many of those are already pointing to lifting off of zero as early as even this year or next year," Kansas City Federal Reserve President Esther George said, according to Dow Jones.

George, who is not a voting member on the Fed's policymaking committee, was speaking at an event to business leaders in Shawnee, Oklahoma.

George said she is concerned about the impact of higher food prices on low income households, and that she is anxious to work toward policy normalization, Dow Jones reported.