Grocery prices rising?

[tloonya]

Apr 14, 2014 7:24:34 GMT -5 @wrongsideof30 said:

Is it just me, or are grocery prices really starting to tick up? The company that I have been using to purchase chicken breasts from, in bulk, will no longer be selling them because they aren't able to find them for a reasonable price anymore. This is the first Easter that I haven't seen eggs go on sale for $1/dozen. And when I ran to Kroger last night, there was ~8 abandoned shopping carts, off to the side, near the self checkout. I asked the cashier why they were there, and she said it was all items that people left behind. I asked her if that was unusual and she said they always have some (1 or 2 carts), but that it has been excessive lately.

Is anyone else noticing rising prices?

Definitely!
Our Philadelphia cheesesteak are down to 4oz of the steak instead of 6oz!!! That is almost a crime in my book.
You do not reduce amount of meat on a cheesesteak! Or you going down

We grocery shop every day. prices are going up but somehow it doesn't really bother me. You can still eat well but you have to
settle for whats on sale rather than what I want to eat. If you are flexible - you are ok!

[alabamagal]

It seems to me like a lot are staying the same, but prices on some things are going way up.

Beef prices are definitely up. I don't buy much beef though

Chicken I haven't noticed much change

Shrimp prices are WAY up.

Bacon prices are WAY up.   I normally don't buy much, but I do in the summer for BLTs

Eggs are WAY up too.  Still a cheap source of protein, but I don't expect to see any easter sales.

[midjd]

Apr 14, 2014 7:24:34 GMT -5 @wrongsideof30 said:

Is it just me, or are grocery prices really starting to tick up? The company that I have been using to purchase chicken breasts from, in bulk, will no longer be selling them because they aren't able to find them for a reasonable price anymore. This is the first Easter that I haven't seen eggs go on sale for $1/dozen. And when I ran to Kroger last night, there was ~8 abandoned shopping carts, off to the side, near the self checkout. I asked the cashier why they were there, and she said it was all items that people left behind. I asked her if that was unusual and she said they always have some (1 or 2 carts), but that it has been excessive lately.

Is anyone else noticing rising prices?

I've noticed that the prices on staples have gone up. Eggs used to be super cheap around Easter here, too - now the "sale" price for a dozen large is $1.50 and the regular price is $2 or more. Our neighbor just got some chickens, so I think we're going to start getting eggs from him instead... if I'm paying $2 a dozen, I'd rather have them from happy chickens

Same with milk - you used to be able to get a gallon for $1.99, now it's $3.09. And the price of meat has gone through the roof. I'm paying $6+ for a pound of antibiotic-free chicken, $8 or $9 for a 2lb shoulder roast for the crockpot, and you can't get a couple of ribeyes for much less than $20 now. DH is one of those people who has to have meat at every meal, so it's been tough to try to menu plan without spending $15+ on dinner for 2 (for that price we may as well go to Chipotle).

These changes are all within the last 12-18 months...

[tloonya]

Apr 14, 2014 8:52:23 GMT -5 midjd said:

Apr 14, 2014 7:24:34 GMT -5 @wrongsideof30 said:

Is it just me, or are grocery prices really starting to tick up? The company that I have been using to purchase chicken breasts from, in bulk, will no longer be selling them because they aren't able to find them for a reasonable price anymore. This is the first Easter that I haven't seen eggs go on sale for $1/dozen. And when I ran to Kroger last night, there was ~8 abandoned shopping carts, off to the side, near the self checkout. I asked the cashier why they were there, and she said it was all items that people left behind. I asked her if that was unusual and she said they always have some (1 or 2 carts), but that it has been excessive lately.

Is anyone else noticing rising prices?

I've noticed that the prices on staples have gone up. Eggs used to be super cheap around Easter here, too - now the "sale" price for a dozen large is $1.50 and the regular price is $2 or more. Our neighbor just got some chickens, so I think we're going to start getting eggs from him instead... if I'm paying $2 a dozen, I'd rather have them from happy chickens

Same with milk - you used to be able to get a gallon for $1.99, now it's $3.09. And the price of meat has gone through the roof. I'm paying $6+ for a pound of antibiotic-free chicken, $8 or $9 for a 2lb shoulder roast for the crockpot, and you can't get a couple of ribeyes for much less than $20 now. DH is one of those people who has to have meat at every meal, so it's been tough to try to menu plan without spending $15+ on dinner for 2 (for that price we may as well go to Chipotle).

These changes are all within the last 12-18 months...

I am pretty sure there are tons of dinners very well under $15 for 2.
Just got to googe.
~Spoken by true carnivore.~

[MarleyKeezy78]

I have noticed. It really sucks but have been trying to hit up sales and us coupons a lot. It's getting out of control in my book.

[NancysSummerSip]

In the case of bacon, it's because there is some kind of illness that is killing pigs in this country: www.foxnews.com/us/2014/01/11/widespread-pig-virus-threatens-to-bump-pork-prices/

We've always had high milk prices here, over $3.25 for a gallon is pretty standard. Eggs are cheap now, if you hit either CVS ($1.29) or Walgreens (99 cents). Otherwise, about $2.25 a dozen. Chicken breasts about $3.50 a pound, and that's for boneless. Bone-in can be found for about $1.75.

What I am not seeing anymore is BOGOs on a lot of high-end items, like meat, chicken, eggs, butter.

[giramomma]

We've been able to still find sales and stuff for some staples. DH just paid $2.50 for milk yesterday. He's been able to get milk for $2.00/gallon in the last month. (Another thing you may want to look at is see if any of your gas stations sell bagged milk. We used to have a gas station that sold bagged milk. It was $1.00/gallon cheaper than getting the stuff in the grocery store.)

We have to be really good about only shopping for loss leaders though.

I may be increasing how much gardening/preserving of food we do, though this summer, to save on food costs.

Also, mid, have you considered going to a butcher for meat? Or doing something like buying a quarter of a cow? 

[The Captain]

Apr 14, 2014 9:08:19 GMT -5 giramomma said:

We've been able to still find sales and stuff for some staples. DH just paid $2.50 for milk yesterday. He's been able to get milk for $2.00/gallon in the last month. (Another thing you may want to look at is see if any of your gas stations sell bagged milk. We used to have a gas station that sold bagged milk. It was $1.00/gallon cheaper than getting the stuff in the grocery store.)

We have to be really good about only shopping for loss leaders though.

I may be increasing how much gardening/preserving of food we do, though this summer, to save on food costs.

Also, mid, have you considered going to a butcher for meat? Or doing something like buying a quarter of a cow? 

I've not heard this phrase before, would you please tell me what is "bagged milk"?

[midjd]

I am pretty sure there are tons of dinners very well under $15 for 2.
Just got to googe.
~Spoken by true carnivore.~

Never said there weren't. It's just more difficult than it used to be...

Also, mid, have you considered going to a butcher for meat? Or doing something like buying a quarter of a cow?

I've been seriously considering it for a few years now... still am, but we have so many dead trees and such frequent power outages in the summer that I'd be nervous getting that much meat without a backup generator... and the generator we'd want runs about $2K... so I just continue spending $20 a week on grocery store meat and thinking "man, I want a cow." It's a vicious cycle.  

[Cookies Galore]

Apr 14, 2014 9:18:08 GMT -5 The Captain said:

Apr 14, 2014 9:08:19 GMT -5 giramomma said:

We've been able to still find sales and stuff for some staples. DH just paid $2.50 for milk yesterday. He's been able to get milk for $2.00/gallon in the last month. (Another thing you may want to look at is see if any of your gas stations sell bagged milk. We used to have a gas station that sold bagged milk. It was $1.00/gallon cheaper than getting the stuff in the grocery store.)

We have to be really good about only shopping for loss leaders though.

I may be increasing how much gardening/preserving of food we do, though this summer, to save on food costs.

Also, mid, have you considered going to a butcher for meat? Or doing something like buying a quarter of a cow? 

I've not heard this phrase before, would you please tell me what is "bagged milk"?

Milk in a bag.


Prices on some things are up, I guess, I don't pay the best attention. We don't even use half a gallon of milk in a week, the smaller 8-count eggs last me a few weeks, and I don't eat meat. Hubs eats meat at dinner once a week and I have fish once a week. Beets seemed pricey this week, but that's just a guess.

ETA: We usually spend no more than $80 a week on groceries but we spent $90 yesterday. I blame the pre-grocery cocktails.

[Tiny]

I noticed the smaller size of stuff - for example the regular pasta now comes in a 12 oz box versus 16 oz (the fancy smancy kind has always been 12 oz). This has been happening for several years.

I'm finally starting to see an increase in the 'sale prices' of stuff - in other words the 'low price' in my price book has increased for alot of stuff I buy all the time. Up until a month or two ago - I was able to get 'staple' kinda foods (on sale and/or with a coupon) for the 'low price' I was use to paying.

Not so much anymore.



Gas skyrocketed about .50 a gallon over the last 2 weeks as well..

[bookkeeper]

DH and I were talking about this yesterday. The TV news loves to go on and on about food prices rising, but no one ever broadcasts anything about food prices going back down. The down trend is apparently not news.

That being said, food prices often rise and fall in a cycle. Beef is usually higher in the summer because the grilling season is in full swing and the grocery stores can get more for the steaks. I was in the HyVee store last week and they had T-bone steaks for $18/lb. What was even more outrageous was that people were buying them!! Baking goods usually go on sale the cheapest at Christmastime, turkeys go on sale before Thanksgiving, and so on.

I shop the loss leaders and put sale items in the freezer. That helps to even out the seasonal ups and downs at the grocery store. I am about to use my last $1.69 pound of butter from Christmas. The same butter is now over $3 in the same store. Hope it goes on sale again before sweet corn season!

I shop 3 stores on a regular basis, getting the best deals at each store. We eat what is on sale and freeze some for later.  That is how to beat high grocery prices.

[bookkeeper]

Milk in a bag is a great convenience for a busy household. My DH was one of 11 children at home growing up. They had a refrigerated milk dispenser that hung on the wall and reloaded it with bagged milk as needed. One of the neighbors where I grew up had a large family and they too had a milk dispenser. Those kids had it made, because they always had white AND chocolate milk on tap!

Less packaging = less cost.

[tloonya]

Apr 14, 2014 9:08:19 GMT -5 giramomma said:

We've been able to still find sales and stuff for some staples. DH just paid $2.50 for milk yesterday. He's been able to get milk for $2.00/gallon in the last month. (Another thing you may want to look at is see if any of your gas stations sell bagged milk. We used to have a gas station that sold bagged milk. It was $1.00/gallon cheaper than getting the stuff in the grocery store.)

We have to be really good about only shopping for loss leaders though.

I may be increasing how much gardening/preserving of food we do, though this summer, to save on food costs.

Also, mid, have you considered going to a butcher for meat? Or doing something like buying a quarter of a cow? 

I always was and still wondering about buying a cow. How do you actually know if it is cheaper?
We can still get BOGO of the beef here. And if you have a cow for such price - do you weight all the parts, subtracting bones weight, pricing fillets and other parts so you know IF you are saving by buying a cow.
I am so very doubt it. And you need an additional freezer as well...

My freezer right now is full of $15.99 per pound of a steaks, organic and all...waiting for the summer.
I had paid $4.99 per pound because it was day before they 'expired'. And we all know meat does not expire on that date.
So if you have time to shop - there is your solution. If not - you have to make time or pay top dollar.

[flamingo]

Man, I'm jealous of those who can buy a gallon of milk for under $4. Even milk at Wally World is over $4/gallon here! 
Now that we've had to watch every penny for the last couple months, I really am noticing how high grocery prices are. It's getting harder and harder to stick to our budget-and it's a fairly generous grocery budget! 

[midjd]

Apr 14, 2014 9:41:02 GMT -5 @wrongsideof30 said:

I wonder about the people who buy name brand stuff. Last month, I had to buy some plastic cups for a birthday party. The last time I bought red plastic cups from Kroger, the sale price was $2.50 for the 50 count package. Now the new sale price is $2.99. I waited awhile to see if the price went down and it didn't. Next to the red Kroger cups, were the red Solo cups. The sale price was $4.89 for twenty something cups (I can't remember the exact count). Who would pay more money for less cups because of the brand Solo? Maybe Solo puts out really good coupons, I don't know. I haven't couponed in awhile. Most of the good deals seemed to dry up after that extreme couponing show aired.

It's because of the Toby Keith song.

[Wisconsin Beth]

Apr 14, 2014 9:43:04 GMT -5 flamingo said:

Man, I'm jealous of those who can buy a gallon of milk for under $4. Even milk at Wally World is over $4/gallon here! 
Now that we've had to watch every penny for the last couple months, I really am noticing how high grocery prices are. It's getting harder and harder to stick to our budget-and it's a fairly generous grocery budget! 

Milk is $1.99 at Aldi's here (at least some of them) and one of the Yuppie type grocery stores around here does milk 2 gallons for $4 on Thursdays. 

[Malarky]

Everything, including staples like flour, sugar,  potatoes and rice have all increased in price. Eggs have been over $2.00 a dozen for a couple of years now.   It's difficult to keep to budget when we already have always shopped primarily the loss leaders.

[bookkeeper]

When I have purchased a half or quarter of beef in the past, the cost has been based on the hanging weight of the animal after slaughter.

Most fat cattle are slaughtered at 1300 pounds. A beef carcass usually has a yield of 63%, meaning 63% of the 1300 pounds is what is left after the head and feet are off and the hide and guts are removed (819 pounds). Cattle producers are paid on the carcass weight of the cattle sold.

If I purchase a half of beef (420 pounds), the seller is paid 1/2 the value of the beef carcass priced by the pound. The butcher will cut the meat down to your specifications and present you will a bill for processing. The pounds of beef you buy on the carcass are not necessarily what you end up with in your freezer. There are some more bones and fat that are discarded and some waste depending on how you want it cut up.

Buying beef by the half or quarter is not necessarily cheaper than buying it on sale at the grocery store, but this depends on where you live.  The cost to process a whole beef steer is in the $400 to $600 range.  I haven't done this in many years because I didn't think I saved much money and I was afraid I would buy 300 to 400 pounds of beef that I may not like the taste of.

[flamingo]

Apr 14, 2014 9:46:02 GMT -5 Wisconsin Beth said:

Apr 14, 2014 9:43:04 GMT -5 flamingo said:

Man, I'm jealous of those who can buy a gallon of milk for under $4. Even milk at Wally World is over $4/gallon here! 
Now that we've had to watch every penny for the last couple months, I really am noticing how high grocery prices are. It's getting harder and harder to stick to our budget-and it's a fairly generous grocery budget! 

Milk is $1.99 at Aldi's here (at least some of them) and one of the Yuppie type grocery stores around here does milk 2 gallons for $4 on Thursdays. 

Even at Aldi here it's $3.09/gallon. And I don't shop Aldi regularly because it's so inconvenient. However, I live in The land of sun and fun, where we had no snow or cold all winter, so I'll bite the bullet on the higher milk prices 

[Wisconsin Beth]

Apr 14, 2014 9:55:16 GMT -5 flamingo said:

Apr 14, 2014 9:46:02 GMT -5 Wisconsin Beth said:

Milk is $1.99 at Aldi's here (at least some of them) and one of the Yuppie type grocery stores around here does milk 2 gallons for $4 on Thursdays. 

Even at Aldi here it's $3.09/gallon. And I don't shop Aldi regularly because it's so inconvenient. However, I live in The land of sun and fun, where we had no snow or cold all winter, so I'll bite the bullet on the higher milk prices 

I shop there for milk and for storage bags.  DH really likes theirs.  I don't care one way or the other on that so he gets his way.    I do sometimes buy other stuff there, esp. if I'm floundering for dinner ideas. 

And a few years ago, DH eyeballed milk prices at the Aldi's further west, on his way to and from work.  I think at that time, milk at Aldi's ranged from $1.69 to $2.79, depending on what store you were shopping at.  We'd never noticed such a large difference in less than 7-10 miles. 

[Tiny]

Apr 14, 2014 9:35:24 GMT -5 @wrongsideof30 said:

Apr 14, 2014 9:27:41 GMT -5 bookkeeper said:

I shop the loss leaders and put sale items in the freezer. That helps to even out the seasonal ups and downs at the grocery store. I am about to use my last $1.69 pound of butter from Christmas. The same butter is now over $3 in the same store. Hope it goes on sale again before sweet corn season!

I shop 3 stores on a regular basis, getting the best deals at each store. We eat what is on sale and freeze some for later.  That is how to beat high grocery prices.

This is normally what I do, but the loss leader prices have been higher.

Yeah that!       

[tloonya]

Apr 14, 2014 10:15:30 GMT -5 Tiny said:

Apr 14, 2014 9:35:24 GMT -5 @wrongsideof30 said:

This is normally what I do, but the loss leader prices have been higher.

Yeah that!       

Bottom dollar grapes .98, 3lb of gala apples $1.89, salmon 1.5lb $3.99
Giant today Driscoll's strawberries $1.99 (down from $5.99)

[The Walk of the Penguin Mich]

The main thing that I have noticed much higher prices is beef.  If I can find any under $5/lb, I buy it.  Prices have easily gone up 25-30%.

FM had sirloin in their family packs at $3.99/lb.  I bought a pack, tried it out and went back and bought 2 more.  That should keep us for awhile.

[Deleted]

I really don't pay attention to prices but have noticed ten cent increase here and 15 cent increase there.  beef and chicken has not gone up.  I buy grass fed beef at wegmans and the price has remained consistent - $5.99/lb for ground beef (93/7), $12.49/lb or something like that for petite sirloin - and the organic chicken is $6.99/lb.  I do all my shopping at Wegman's as I have no desire to run to 5 different stores to save $1 on green beans.

[Blonde Granny]

I just came from the Walmart Neighborhood Market.

3 Gala apples were 1.76

holy sh*t, I just paid $ 4.72 for a gallon of 1% milk (store brand)

Great Value white sandwich bread $1.17

Great Value Wavy chips 1.98

Deans French Onion Dip 1.68

Lunch meat (gag) 2.50

I normally don't pay much attention to prices, I just buy what we want.  But I am getting better about finishing things off instead of throwing them out.  Today for lunch is red/yellow/orange sautéed peppers on a tortilla with some lettuce added, and some baby carrots.

[tloonya]

Apr 14, 2014 11:06:17 GMT -5 @singlemominmd said:

I really don't pay attention to prices but have noticed ten cent increase here and 15 cent increase there.  beef and chicken has not gone up.  I buy grass fed beef at wegmans and the price has remained consistent - $5.99/lb for ground beef (93/7), $12.49/lb or something like that for petite sirloin - and the organic chicken is $6.99/lb.  I do all my shopping at Wegman's as I have no desire to run to 5 different stores to save $1 on green beans.

Why would anyone who buys $12.49 lb of meat would care about saving anything like  $1 on green beans?

I do doubt however that Wegman's will keep beef prices consistently at $5.99lb IF price of beef went up.
You must had purchased last beef a day before price went up. I hear a lot of it from my customers. I know it is last week price.

[Deleted]

Apr 14, 2014 11:35:15 GMT -5 Blonde Granny said:

I just came from the Walmart Neighborhood Market.

3 Gala apples were 1.76

holy sh*t, I just paid $ 4.72 for a gallon of 1% milk (store brand)

Great Value white sandwich bread $1.17

Great Value Wavy chips 1.98

Deans French Onion Dip 1.68

Lunch meat (gag) 2.50

I normally don't pay much attention to prices, I just buy what we want.  But I am getting better about finishing things off instead of throwing them out.  Today for lunch is red/yellow/orange sautéed peppers on a tortilla with some lettuce added, and some baby carrots.

Do you know how much you are paying for someone to take a carrot and make it into a baby carrot?

[Deleted]

I heard they just cut down the ugly carrots to make baby carrots.

[Deleted]

Apr 14, 2014 11:39:17 GMT -5 tloonya said:

Apr 14, 2014 11:06:17 GMT -5 @singlemominmd said:

I really don't pay attention to prices but have noticed ten cent increase here and 15 cent increase there.  beef and chicken has not gone up.  I buy grass fed beef at wegmans and the price has remained consistent - $5.99/lb for ground beef (93/7), $12.49/lb or something like that for petite sirloin - and the organic chicken is $6.99/lb.  I do all my shopping at Wegman's as I have no desire to run to 5 different stores to save $1 on green beans.

Why would anyone who buys $12.49 lb of meat would care about saving anything like  $1 on green beans?

I do doubt however that Wegman's will keep beef prices consistently at $5.99lb IF price of beef went up.
You must had purchased last beef a day before price went up. I hear a lot of it from my customers. I know it is last week price.

ummmm no, it is the current price. perfect portion sirloin is $13.99/lb and that has gone up as I know that was under $13/lb when I previously bought it (and confirmed by looking at my previous shopping trips).