Around one in three U.S. adults say they are spending more on groceries than they were at the start of 2021, according to a survey by Morning Consult, reports Bloomberg. Respondents said red meat had the highest prices, followed by chicken.
Food prices have been rising for months, driven by higher commodity costs, costlier transportation, and labor challenges, said Morning Consult, according to the report.
“We’ve got these pockets of inflation without having corresponding wage growth, and that’s going to put consumers in a really tough spot,” Morning Consult economist John Leer said in an interview.
About a quarter of U.S. shoppers say they’ve started buying fewer items overall during the pandemic to save money. In addition, more than 40 percent of Hispanic and Black respondents reported higher grocery costs since the start of the year, while white shoppers said there has been no change in their spending.
Leer noted that this is likely because minority communities have been hit harder by the pandemic, meaning that shoppers are more likely to switch out restaurant spending for more economical shopping, which results in higher grocery bills but lower overall food costs. Full Story
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