Eating costs more in Biden’s America. The last time this much of your income went to buying groceries was 30 years ago.
Inflation may be ebbing but food costs are not. Don’t look for relief any time soon. Restaurants and food companies are dealing with rising labor costs and the rising costs of some ingredients, like cocoa.
Prices at restaurants were up 5.1% last month compared to January 2023. Grocery costs increased 1.2% during the same timeframe. The sad fact is that once food items go up in price, they don’t come back down. Shoppers have to adjust to the price increase.
“If you look historically after periods of inflation, there’s really no period you could point to where [food] prices go back down,” said Steve Cahillane, chief executive of snack giant Kellanova, in an interview. “They tend to be sticky.”
To adjust to higher costs, people go out to eat less frequently or they skip appetizers. Store brands are purchased instead of name brands at the supermarket. The use of apps to find deals and promotions is popular.
This is affecting sales at restaurants and other food makers. If people aren’t able to go to restaurants, that means employees experience a loss of hours and layoffs. The owners can’t afford the overhead if sales are down.
Your wallet is feeling the pinch, as it did in 1991.
In 1991, U.S. consumers spent 11.4% of their disposable personal income on food, according to data from the U.S. Agriculture Department. At the time, households were still dealing with steep food-price increases following an inflationary period during the 1970s.
More than three decades later, food spending has reattained that level, USDA data shows. In 2022, consumers spent 11.3% of their disposable income on food, according to the most recent USDA data available.
Food companies are feeling the price increases. Some commodities like corn, wheat, coffee beans, and chicken have decreased, while others like sugar, beef, and french fries are still rising.
President Biden filmed a video to be posted during Super Bowl Sunday. It was all about rising prices on snack food items. He learned a new word – shrinkflation – and called it a rip-off. It is but the reason there is less quantity of a product in a bag or carton and the price is the same is because it is an adjustment made because of inflation. Bidenflation. Joe Biden raised the inflation rate to a high not seen in decades. Now he wants credit for inflation ebbing. You can’t make this stuff up.
While you were Super Bowl shopping, did you notice smaller-than-usual products where the price stays the same?
Folks are calling it Shrinkflation and it means companies are giving you less for every dollar you spend.
I’m calling on the big consumer brands to put a stop to it. pic.twitter.com/wL1NsEh78F
— President Biden (@POTUS) February 11, 2024
President Dementia wants to blame companies for adjusting to Bidenflation. The president is anti-business and thinks grocery stores fix prices. It was the same with gas stations when he noticed the price of a gallon of gas. Joe Biden is clueless about how businesses work. His lifetime in elected office leaves him unable to understand the basics of real life.
Is it a coincidence that the American economy was booming under the supervision of a non-politician businessman during the previous administration? Who do you trust to heal the economy for American families – Joe Biden or Donald Trump? Trump’s record sure looks better than Biden’s at this point. Pre-COVID-19, most Americans were doing pretty good. Now there are 60% of Americans who live paycheck to paycheck while the administration gaslights voters about how wonderfully Bidenomics is doing.
The CEO of the Consumer Brands Association said food manufacturers will work with Biden. And a suburban woman noted the changes her family is making due to high food costs.
David Chavern, CEO of the Consumer Brands Association, which represents major food manufacturers, said the industry offers many choices at different price points. “We hope to work with the president on real solutions that benefit consumers,” he said.
In suburban Chicago, Lisa Wister said her food bills are rising faster than her family’s income, leading them to make their own granola from scratch and pack their own snacks for the movies. “Everything is a negotiation, an analysis about our budget,” said Wister, an occupational therapist. “It’s exhausting.”
Americans are exhausted. Since the pandemic, our lives have been turned upside down. Prices are higher but wages are not. Biden’s policies have not provided the breathing room for the families he keeps talking about. No amount of happy talk will change that. A new president in the White House could change things up, though, and our only hope is for a Republican to be elected in November.