With grocery prices up 25% since the beginning of the pandemic, Americans have found themselves making some serious sacrifices and putting off paying for necessities, such as rent or other bills, to afford groceries.
I eat almost no processed food other than giving my kids breakfast cereal and lunch treats, and a grocery trip that I’m used to costing $80 costs $120, consistently, week over week. Maybe food prices aren’t continuing to skyrocket, but higher prices are locked in, and wages aren’t catching up.
I think a lot of the existing higher prices are largely due to grocery store mega corps price gouging. Smaller markets are more flexible (while paying their staff living wages). Famers markets are still an obscene value. I filled up two bags with produce the other week for $30. Granted, ten years ago that would have been $20.
Also, no one seems to mention the increased prevalence of paying with a card. Every transaction paid with credit or debit is hit with a 2-3% charge from Visa or the POS supplier. Now that so few people are paying with cash, all stores are increasing their prices to cover those costs.
I eat almost no processed food other than giving my kids breakfast cereal and lunch treats, and a grocery trip that I’m used to costing $80 costs $120, consistently, week over week. Maybe food prices aren’t continuing to skyrocket, but higher prices are locked in, and wages aren’t catching up.
I think a lot of the existing higher prices are largely due to grocery store mega corps price gouging. Smaller markets are more flexible (while paying their staff living wages). Famers markets are still an obscene value. I filled up two bags with produce the other week for $30. Granted, ten years ago that would have been $20.
Also, no one seems to mention the increased prevalence of paying with a card. Every transaction paid with credit or debit is hit with a 2-3% charge from Visa or the POS supplier. Now that so few people are paying with cash, all stores are increasing their prices to cover those costs.