Horrified at the cost of food lately? Please tell me we're being gouged

[Kathy in Cambridge]

in Boston. SoCal Dem began a thread about shopping and how much meat has gone up, probably due to the popularity of the Atkins diet. I'm honestly horrified every time I go to the store. here's what I've paid recently in a regular supermarket (not Whole Foods or anyplace fancy):

Dozen Eggs $2.99 a dozen
Pot Roast $7.99/lb (cheap cut-nothing fancy)
Boneless Chix $5.49/lb
Center Cut Port Chops $5.99/lb (ON SALE!)
Cabot Butter $3.49 LB
Lettuce (mesclun greens): $7.98/lb
Broccoli: $1.99-2.49/lb
Asparagus: $3.99/lb
Spanish Onion: $0.99/lb
Leeks $2.49/lb
Bartlett Pears $1.39/lb (Sale)
Lemons 2/$1
Half & Half (Pint, Organic): $1.99

My grocery bill has gone up about 25% since last year.

How are the prices in your area? Should I start a revolt at the supemarket?

[burrowowl]

1. Always higher in New Mexico

and have gotten higher. Your high prices look good compared to ours.

[Newsjock]

2. Vanishing middle class

That's because you're buying liberal food.

If you'd just be a good Muhrkin and shop at Wal-Mart, you could get:

Eight -- count-em, eight -- generic toaster pastries for $1.25.
Top Ramen, 10 cents each.
Budget Gourmet microwavable dinners, 99 cents each.

Get with the program already. Or are you some type of ... terrorist?

[Kathy in Cambridge]

8. I'm buying healthy food

I cook fresh food-nothing processed.

[Newsjock]

12. As well you should

But it's also no secret that the most unhealthy food continues to often be the cheapest -- and, these days, factors greatly into many Americans' choice of what to eat. Another reason we're such an overweight country.

[Kathy in Cambridge]

14. It's a conspiracy to placate people with food

keep them fat, unhealthy and unable to get to the voting booth. Keep them hooked on bad food so their kids will have learning disabilities. It's a conspiracy to keep the poor down.

[wryter2000]

3. Hmmm

I'd never, ever, ever pay that for pot roast. Buy chuck, instead.

Also, I buy large cuts (sub-primals) and cut them up. A whole pork loin at Costco goes for (I think) $1.99 per pound. At least, it used to. No way would it cost $5.99. I can cut that into as many chops and roasts as I want -- at the exact thickness I want.

What's gone up here is the cost of natural gas. We're being Enroned again. (NoCal)

[Kathy in Cambridge]

13. I was buying Round-not cheap but should NOT be $7.99/LB

And natural gas and oil prices are through the roof here too.

[Deja Q]

4. In Minnesota

Milk (not treated by hormones): $2.20/half gal (ye 1 gal milk has remained at $3.69 - for now anyway :crazy: )
fresh Cauliflower - $2.89 for a teent tiny head
fresh Broccoli - $1.89
I only eat ground turkey or tuna, prices for those have been stable ($1.29/$.58 each)
Tomatoes are 1lb/$3
jumbo white Onions are $.89/lb
Romaine lettuce is $1.99 per head (the last time I checked was 3 weeks ago)
Dozen eggs were $1.?? but I don't remember distinctly.

For some items, I'd be hopping mad too. Especially cauliflower and broccoli, but everyone's got big signs saying that due to adverse weather conditions in California, many vegetables aren't plentiful nor great in quality.

[SoCalDem]

24. "adverse weather conditions in California"..= BIG FAT LIE

Our weather here has been severe clear... stuf is being irrigated like always..

This is the lie that is told to other parts of the country..

What is happening.. I suspect that our produce is being sold "elsewhere" for bigger bucks, and a shortage is being "created" so they can rake in big prices here too..

I can remember when California strawberries were selling for 99cents a basket in Kansas, they were triple that here... only a few miles from where they were grown..:(

Free market..bah!!

[Kathy in Cambridge]

25. It's crazy, isn't it?

American produce is probably being exported and here non-organic straberries are $3.99/pint.

[david_vincent]

5. You're definitely paying too much for eggs

Of the other stuff, I'd suggest the prices on most of the produce seem too high, as well. Lemons two for a buck is what we pay here for the big lemons, but the small ones should be five for a buck. They're just lemons! Some of your groceries are things I never buy anyway - like Half & Half, for instance; it's always overpriced and not worth buying.
I think we pay more than a dollar less for eggs than you are, and your pot roast and lettuce also seem way too high.

[Undecided Okie]

52. Eat?

Haven't you hear? Eating is not healthy. The higher food prices are for your direct health benefit. The less you eat, the healthier you are.:D

[scottcsmith]

6. Sounds about right

I think the prices where I live (Beaverton, OR) are a little cheaper, but not much. I should know better as I do the shopping at home, but I think a dozen eggs is between $1.99 - $2.49. I don't buy a lot of greens, but everything else looks very close to what I pay. I might be saving perhaps .50 on some items.

[PackedForPerth]

7. Sheesh!

I'd change stores were I you. I'm paying

$3.25 for 4 dozen large eggs
No more than about $4/lb for pot roast
$2.29/lb for boneless thighs...
about the same for Danish dairy butter... the best in the US.
about $1.99/lb for fresh asparagus spears
about $3.50 for center cut pork chops...

You're getting ripped...

[Kathy in Cambridge]

11. I'm shopping at the CHEAP grocery stores

Market Basket, Stop&Shop, Shaw's.

You probably live in a less expensive area.

[PackedForPerth]

19. no way...

I don't think the Monterey Peninsula in California could be considered a cheap place to live by any rational measure.

[Kathy in Cambridge]

23. No but your access to fresh food year 'round

is probably why your produce is cheaper. It's really ridiculous here.

[PackedForPerth]

31. nope...

Our produce isn't that much cheaper than what you're quoting. This county produces about $4 billion in produce every year. Our stores have to buy it at the same wholesale prices that yours do. As well, we all buy out-of-season produce the same out of Mexico and points as far south as Chile. No big savings there.

Our fish is a bit cheaper, especially if you shop and don't mind processing it yourself. We do have a good bunch of fisherman hereabouts.

[Don_G]

9. I Don't Have To

Remember, the price of veggies you pay at the counter is related to the price you pay at the pump.

If you have a little space, I suggest growing a few veggies and looking overhead to "judge" the weather.

[amazona]

10. looks like gouging to me

Grocery prices are always cheaper in the south but even here I've noticed some isues.

In my area 1 dozen eggs have gone from the cheap price being 69 cents a pound to 1.39 a pound being the lowest. I'm about to leave the country but when I return I intend to purchase some laying hens. I had some years ago, and they are well worth the small amount of time and trouble they take.

I don't buy greens, as they are too easy to grow in winter here, but they are around $1.49 for maybe a 1 pound head -- when they reached $1 a head for basically zero calories years back, I put my foot down on buying them in the store.

Chicken is still cheap. The non-sale price for hindquarters is 39 cents a pound (I've gotten them as low as 19 cents this year), and the whole chicken I bought a couple days back was 69 cents a pound, which is still a common price. Sale price could go as low as 49 cents a pound. Chicken is cheaper in real dollars than it was 30 or 40 years ago. Cut up the chicken yourself while it is partially frozen; it's easy, and you end up with more than just the breasts.

Onions have gone through the roof, and I'm not sure why. 99 cents a pound for sweet onions, OK, but 89 cents a pound for yellow onions? This is crazy. I'm growing my own green onions, and I was able to buy a 50 pound bag of yellow onions for $10. To make them sweet, saute them for a few minutes in real butter or bacon fat -- depending on what you're cooking.

[BlueEyedSon]

15. As the value of the dollar goes down, commodities go up.

[Kathy in Cambridge]

16. And the dollar is doing poorly-I was in Rome in November

and the euro hit its highest point against the dollar. Sucked big time.

[girl gone mad]

17. Okay..

I'm in Texas, and this is from my most recent receipt (last Sun.):

1 dozen eggs (organic, free-range chickens) - 2.29
1/2 gallon organic whole milk - 3.29
4 Veggie Burgers - 3.79
Salmon - 3.99/lb (that price has really come down over the last few years).

[demvoter]

20. Okay so its unanimous

We all agree food prices are out of sight!
So who can we blame > Republicans?
Or next question what can we do about it??

[PackedForPerth]

49. don't agree...

I don't call agreeing to that. When some food item tries to get out of hand I just change my diet. I eat a lot more fish these days than I did a few years ago because stores were playing games with beef prices.

[SoCalDem]

50. I hope you are not female..

mercury is in fish and they do not recommend that childbearing aged women eat much fish..

:(.

[Kathy in Cambridge]

51. I live in New England and fish prices here should be low

but aren't. Meat is still cheaper per pound than fish here.

[HereSince1628]

53. Fish is out of sight expensive in Wisconsin... and not fresh

It wouldn't be a cheaper choice here unless you caught your own, and then, depending on where in Wisconsin you're taking fish, there are health advisories.

[Kathy in Cambridge]

21. Here Organic/Free Range Eggs: $3.69/Dozen

I stopped eating organic because with me unemployed, we just can't afford it.

[DoNotRefill]

18. Here...

1 doz grad A large eggs: 0.79
Pot roast: $2.09 in bulk (60 pounds at a time, 3 20 pound pieces, cut yourself, $3.59 if pre-cut)
Lettuce: 2 pound garden express pack: $2.99
Onions: $15 for 50 pound bag

Picked up fresh turkey the day after thanksgiving for $0.19/lb.


Shop around.

[Kathy in Cambridge]

22. As I mentioned, I do shop at the CHEAP grocery stores

and use coupons. I also go to the food coop near my house but even they're expensive. I guess I'm paying the price of living in a large urban area.

[Timefortruth]

27. You either use bags of onions as coffee tables or you have

quite a bit of storage space.

Or do you shop for a family of 30?

All of the above?

[DoNotRefill]

42. Nope...

I buy for myself and my extended family. When I buy a 50 pound bag of onions or 60 pounds of roast, I divide it up and repackage it. My house keeps some (20-30 pounds), and we give some to my mom' family (15 pounds) and my sister's family (15 pounds). They'll throw some cash our way in return.

Storage isn't a problem, but the return from the store isn't just a "throw everything into the fridge or freezer" thing. Shopping's easy, but the 2-4 hours after unloading can be a bother, not to mention all the blood in the kitchen from chopping up the meat.

We also have a decent-sized chest freezer. That's where the 200 pounds of turkey we got for $40 after thanksgiving is now. That should keep us for the better part of the year. the chhest freezer paid for itself and a year's energy consumption in under 3 months.

It's a matter of shopping when it's cheap and in bulk, then storing it until we need it.

[Lars39]

26. Outrageous egg prices are leading me to experiment with soy flour

as a replacement. One Tablespoon soy flour + one Tablespoon water is supposed to equal one egg in recipes like brownies and quick breads, pancakes etc. I was going to try it first in brownies, but I've got bananas that are ready to made into bread tonight.

[curse10]

28. Boston is definately more expensive than Denver

it's amazing the difference in prices. I'm much more careful with what I buy- things are sometimes twice as much here.

And, on edit: My mom said she heard on the news that eggs are specifically going up in price because of the atkins diet fad. Meat is also going up. Glad I don't eat either :-)

[Kathy in Cambridge]

33. I feel bad for the student population in Boston

it must be hell to try to live cheaply. Food, rent, car insurance-yikes!

[curse10]

46. I know- I'm lucky I have a boyfriend

some of my friends are having real trouble making ends meet. Rent alone is enough to kill most budgets.

I can't imagine being unemployed right now- at least I have some loan money. But I worry about people like SiobhanClancy all the time. She's got kitties to feed! :-)

[Kathy in Cambridge]

48. I know-I'm glad I own property. Rents are insane here

I can't imagine trying to live off campus as a student.

I worry about SiobhanClancy too, have you talked to her lately?

[cliss]

29. My grocery bill has gone down.

But that's because I X'ed out all meat...too expensive. I went with a vegetarian diet and we now live on about $55 per person per month in groceries. I make all my meals from scratch. Awesome soups & casseroles; yummy homemade pizza with all the toppings! (except meat).

Because we live so cheaply, we can afford to buy little extras, like the really good bread. No wine or beer, by the way.

That's the only good thing about the reign of King George I.

[Nikia]

30. Not quite that bad

Our meat is cheaper by a couple dollars. Veggies seem to have gone up but my Barlett pears that I bought this morning were only 89 cents per pound. We get non perishables fairly cheap if we drive a little bit. In Wisconsin, there is a chain called Woodman's that is employee owned and very large. Most stuff there is cheaper than even Walmart. I think that the veggies and meat there are a little cheaper but I get nervous about buying fresh food from high volume stores.

[RebelOne]

32. Yes, prices have gone up even here in Georgia

But luckily, I am a vegetarian, so am not getting gouged on the price of meat. But my soy products have gone up in price. The vegetable prices here are not so high; for instance, lettuce is about $1.29 (but it is always higher in the winter), broccoli $1.39, asparagus $2.99. But I am paying a lot more for other items. That's why I have been shopping at Big Lots and Target Superstore instead of the supermarkets.

[Kathy in Cambridge]

35. I eat soy products and some have skyrocketed

like soy milk.

Since vegetarianism is not an option in my house, I am getting a Costco membership and seeing if I can get better bargains there.

[chaska]

34. Imagine what it would cost if transportation weren't so highly subsidized.

It's winter. If this were a 1903 instead of 2003 you wouldn't be eating a lot of what was on that list.

Don't mean to lecture but strawberries in December is a bit decadent. Trucking stuff from Mexico is not environmentally friendly. Eat as local as possible.

Cabbage, potatoes, other root veggies should be relatively cheaper.

Sorry if I sound like an a**hole. Trying to be informative, really.

[Kathy in Cambridge]

36. Our farmers market shut in November

and if I weren't unemployed I WOULD be eating locally grown produce and Locally farmed animals, all organic or free-range. We just can't afford it.

Parsnips at 2.49/lb are not cheap, nor are carrots or Maine potatoes. Sorry to burst your bubble.

[corporatewhore]

40. try growing your own

you can makesure hey are organic have fun time w/family.I live in an apartment but i use the large community garden plots

[mlawson]

37. In Western NC:

Dozen free range eggs (local), $1.99
I don't eat meat, so I have no idea about the next three.
Ingle's (supermarket) own butter, $2.19/lb
Mesclun greens, maybe 6.00/lb
Broccoli, $1.99/lb
Asparagus, $2.49/lb for green; white a little higher
Onions, 59c to $1.29/lb
Leeks, $2.19
Pears, $1.29
Lemons, 2/$1; limes 4/1$
H & H nonfat, .99 / pint

[rapier]

38. Yes, there is no inflation

Inflation is ultra low. You can look it up. Or just read any newpaper, magazine or listen to ANY media tout saying how wonderful the economic future is, partly because there is no inflation.

Oh sure, stocks and financial instruments are inflating but we don't call that inflation. We call that value.

Revolt. Nah, shop at WallMart. No unions. Lower prices.

Remember this. Yes, we have no inflation.

[corporatewhore]

39. Grow your Own

its fun gardening gives you mild excerise and it tastes sooooo much better !!!!!

[LynneSin]

41. RationalRose, are you insane? Our economy is recovering

:crazy:

At least that's what the freepers on Fox News are trying to tell us!!

[Kathy in Cambridge]

44. I wonder if Freepers keep track of their grocery bills.

Prices have inflated considerably since last year. Marginalization of the middle class, destruction of the working class. It's nuts.

[TreasonousBastard]

43. Higher than here...

but eggs here have doubled, and beef is up. Veggies come and go depending on the season.

I know about beef-- it's a perfect storm of low supplies and growing demand. Hamburger on the hoof is going for record prices to the ranchers and feedlots, so we are going to pay more.

Eggs I don't understand. Trying to find out why the spike. Asked a couple of grocers, and no one knows.

Pork? What's with pork so high?

A lot of things are regional. My brother in Nebraska has always bought bacon for a buck a pound, while I usually pay 4 bucks a pound. Butter stays around $3-4 a pound here, while other places pay much less. It's a combination of transportation of perishables and middleman costs.

Vast amounts of fresh veggies come from Mexico and other parts flung around the world-- Holland is a biggie for tomatoes, believe it or not. Between the hepatitis scares and terrorist bullshit over imports, that may have been holding up supplies and increasing prices. I haven't noticed a spike in frozen veggies.

The dollar falling doesn't help imported food either.

[Kathy in Cambridge]

45. I guess it must cost more to transport food to the Northeast

I have noticed food imported from Holland. I saw some beautiful red and yellow peppers from there the other day, but they were $4.98/lb.

:wtf:

I realize I sound like a cheapskate, but I can't justify paying $3 for a pepper.

[TreasonousBastard]

54. I agree...

those peppers are works of art-- like those Japanese apples.

They're specially grown and flown in, and that ain't cheap.

Not for the average family eating, but for special occasions and tony restaurants. I'd blow the money if I was throwing "that" kind of party.

BTW, I found this about egg prices. It seems it's pretty much the same situation as beef-- demand has risen while supplies have fallen:

http://www.indystar.com/articles/7/101185-5677-009.html

Pork prices, though, should have dropped:

http://news.uns.purdue.edu/UNS/html3month/031010.Hurt.outlook.html

I'm not sure about the transport costs-- the northeast is a huge food market, and there should be economies of scale getting the stuff here. There are, unfortunately, a lot of middlemen in the business, and that's where the money goes.

Note that hog farmers are getting 36-40 cents a pound for live porkers. Supposing something under half a hog's weight is meat, then the farmer is getting a a buck a pound at most for the pork chops.

The other three bucks or so that we pay is for processors, transportation, wholesalers, retailers, and other middlemen that take a few pennies a pound at every step on the way to the plate.

[SheilaT]

47. I live in Overland Park, Kansas

and my weekly grocery bill has been pretty stable the past six or so years. If I notice certain things are more expensive than I want to pay, I don't buy them until the price goes down.

It's December. Most fresh fruits and vegetables are being shipped in from somewhere else.

I do a reasonable amount of cooking from scratch, make soups, stews, roasts, and so on. We're omnivores in this household.

[grasswire]

55. I'm in the Pacific Northwest....

....and I don't think prices have gone up generally. Some things, yes. But butter is $1.25 per pound this winter while last year it was $3.50. I buy sale items and coupon items regularly, and if something isn't a reasonable price, I just don't buy the item. But I'm lucky enough to have four different chains close by and time to shop for value rather than convenience. We don't eat much red meat -- probably just one meal a week.

A sampling of prices from my recent shopping:

A can of water packed tuna 39 cents
Gallon 3.25 milk $1.99
Two pound brick Tillamook cheddar $3.49
9 percent fat ground beef $1.89 per pound
5 lb sugar 99 cents
10 pounds Idaho russets 69 cents
Tillamook butter $1.25 per pound
Butter lettuce head $1.19 (that's pretty high for here)
Naval oranges 39 cents per pound
Local braeburn apples 79 cents per pound
Best Foods Hellman's $2.49
8 oz fruit at bottom yogurt 38 cents
Extra sour long baguette $1.50
20-oz bag of superior brand frozen spinach $1.67
10 oz good romano for grating $3.99 (store brand)
16 oz cottage cheese 99 cents
16 oz sour cream 99 cents
12 oz apricot jam $2 (Knott's Berry Farm)
6 double rolls TP $2.50
Loaf 100 percent whole wheat bread Orowheat $1.50
chicken noodle soup 59 cents per can (sometimes 3 for $1)
Safeway has real good shank half or whole hams for 88 cents per pound.

It might be real interesting to provide the URLs for our store web sites so we can see for ourselves.

But I don't think prices have changed much here. Some things I find just astoundingly low.

[SoCalDem]

56. Your prices are pretty good up there..

The oddest things here are costing more and more.. russet baking potatoes for example. 99 cents a pound..
Oroweat bread 2.70 a loaf
navel orangers were 1.19 a pound last week..

of course the 3 month-long strike has affected all the prices everywhere, so that may be part of it.but prices never really fluctuate much..They just are steadily creeping UP.UP

We never really have seasonal fruit either anymore. I used to love it when peaches or plums or whatever were "in season".. They would be very reasonably priced and we would gorge ourselves for that short tiime, and then o to another fruit or vegetabl;e.. Now that they come from all over the world, they never drop in price.. When ours is in season, theirs is out, so we ship the "extra" there and our prices stay high..

example.. Today I bought bing cherries from south america..:)
They were maahhhvelous :) expensive, but I HAD to have them :)