Hey, we all know food prices are high, although we may not agree on the reasons. See below for what AI says is the cause.
In any case, at the market today I indulged myself.
If you look closely I paid $5.89 for the bag. That’s outrages. If you use the portion size info on the bag, it comes to $0.02 per chip. 🤔
I also bought four gallons of water for $9.16
No wonder my food bill is so high. But the thing is, I did not need to buy either, it was a choice as is much of what is in most shopping carts – snacks, soda, baked goods, prepared foods and much more. It all adds to the weekly bill.
Then we have the fact that Americans waste a lot of the food they buy – estimated at 25%. Here is an article I wrote on the subject.
The bottom line is, if you want prices, and more relevant your food bill, to come down, stop buying stuff you don’t need.
If you don’t believe, me double check your cart before you get to the checkout.
🧇🍗🌭🍕🥙🍔🍖🥓🥩🍟🥪🌮🧆🥗🌯🍝🥫🍜🍣🦪🍚🥮🍤
There are a number of factors that are contributing to the high cost of food, including:
- Labor shortages: The agriculture industry is facing a major labor shortage, which is making it difficult to produce enough food to meet demand. This is due to a number of factors, including low wages, high training costs, and the decline of rural jobs.
- Supply chain disruptions: The COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine have disrupted supply chains, making it more difficult to get food from producers to consumers. This is due to factors such as port closures, transportation disruptions, and the use of fertilizers, which are also facing supply chain challenges.
- Drought: Droughts have caused crop failures in many parts of the world, which is reducing food production. This is particularly a problem in countries that rely on agriculture for their livelihoods.
- Avian flu: The avian flu has caused outbreaks in poultry farms, which has led to the slaughter of millions of chickens and turkeys. This has also disrupted supply chains and raised prices for poultry products.
- Corporate greed: Some critics argue that corporate greed is driving up food prices. They point to the fact that the profits of large grocery chains have increased significantly in recent years, while the prices of food products have not.
QUINNSCOMMENTARY 
I don’t buy anything that isn’t on sale or offered at a discount through the supermarket grocery rewards program. When I see a favorite item on sale I buy a few extra. I see lots of wonderful things that I might enjoy but just pass them by. It isn’t that hard. Nobody needs junk food and if a person reads the ingredients listed for most of the processed foods they would lose their appetite.
LikeLike
grocery store prices are coming down and have been since late 2022–the inflation rate that hit 9% in June of 2022 is easing as are food prices–I was shopping this morning at a large chain and sale signs were all over the place so it is better than the past but there are always issues.
housing–cars–insurance among so many other items and services cost more–once you dump as much $ into the system as was done you get inflation–that’s how the system works—too much money chasing too few goods.
4 of the so called reasons for high food prices (see the essay) are “shortage” issues–so food shortages occur but not a shortage of $–all that money chasing fewer goods you have the classic inflation.
LikeLike
Too busy (lazy) to look up the article, but, as I recall, the local store has a very thin margin still and is just passing on costs from food processors, who are reportedly showing large profit increases. Tell me if I’m wrong.
LikeLike
Grocers aren’t dummies, they know what to put at eye level and fill up whole aisles with the processed snack foods. The real grocery items take up only a small part of the whole array. That still doesn’t mean that the price of basic goods hasn’t gone up though. Even the careful shopper has seen a significant increase in the grocery bill.
LikeLike
My son-in-law works in the kitchen for a major mid-Western chain grocery store. Operating a grocery store is really a major logistic challenge with so many different brands of the same type of food or drink to stock to cater to the preferences of the consumers. When you walk into a large or mid-size grocery store, do you marvel at the fantastic variety on the shelves and in the aisles and in the ready made food stations?
Be thankful when you shop at a grocery store. All the “goodies” you want are readily available…although for a price! For shoppers on limited incomes, it is a nightmare trying to resist all the temptations and stick to a drastically reduced food budget. For the discretionary income shopper, it’s a sheer joy!
LikeLike