Here Are The Grocery Items To Save On—And The Prices To Watch For

Topline

With a week to go, Americans are loading their shopping carts in preparation for Super Bowl Sunday and whether fans are partying at home or heading out for the big game, food prices generally are up from this time last year, prompting economists to recommend more affordable purchases like avocados and wings, rather than burgers and chips.

Fans react as they watch the San Francisco 49ers play the Kansas City Chiefs during a Super Bowl LIV … [+] watch party.

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Key Facts

Overall food prices are up from this time last year, with food inflation up 11.8% for at home food and 8.3% for food away from home, a Wells Fargo Super Bowl Food report found.

Avocados are down 20% from this time last year, making guacamole an economical choice for a Super Bowl spread.

Chicken wings were a recommendation from the report, which found the price per whole chicken wing this year is down 22%, due in part to the conscious effort of poultry companies to have a better supply of chicken wings this year after an expensive 2022, according to Michael Swanson, Wells Fargo’s Chief Agricultural Economist.

Beer saw the largest increase among alcoholic beverages, up by 11% from last year, while wine is up 3% and spirits are up 2% from last year.

Potato chips and tortilla chips are running close to the overall food average, up 8-10% from last year, Swanson said.

While hamburger prices are also up from this time last year, Swanson said, they’re down from the summer rush.

Key Background

The overall increases in food prices are the culmination of a number of factors, according to David Ortega, a food economist at Michigan State University. The increase in food prices started with the pandemic, when both the cost of labor and the cost of transportation increased, Ortega said. With Eastern Europe supplying much of the grain and wheat supply worldwide, the Russian invasion of Ukraine added another stressor to consumer food prices. On top of that, the U.S. is facing the deadliest avian flu outbreak in history. All of these factors converging at once is what caused the significant rise in food prices, something Ortega said he hasn’t seen in decades.

Tangent

Grocery stores are moving towards a “featuring” model, Swanson said, by luring customers in with one particular item or deal and hoping they’ll stay and do all of their shopping at that retailer. Swanson said this is a direct response to the improvement of the supply chain. Now that supply is better, retailers can work to bring customers by marketing those feature items.

Crucial Quote

“I think this is a harbinger of better food inflation coming, to see these things drop in price by these percentages,” Swanson said.

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Key Facts

Key Background

Tangent

Crucial Quote

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