NATIONAL (SNN TV) – Some very good news for your wallet ahead of those Mother’s Day and Memorial Day barbecues.
The cost of food has dropped for the second straight month with basics like milk and eggs leading the way, but also some summer staples too like hot dogs!
For families who’ve watched grocery bills take an over-sized bite out of their budgets, such as Chris Roberts and his 3 kids, the last two years have been tough to swallow:
“We used to spend $30 a day, and now it’s closer to $60 just about every single day,” Roberts says.
But months of double-digit food increases appear to finally be easing:
The Bureau of Labor Statistics shows ‘food at home’ prices fell modestly month-to-month in March (-0.3%) and April (-0.2%), the first time the benchmark has come down since September 2020.
In South Florida, some parents trying to capitalize ahead of the Mother’s Day and Memorial Day holidays. With so many eyeing savings, here are some items in your cart that now cost less:
- Eggs have ‘cracked’ their pricing surge, falling 1.5% after a nearly 11% drop the month before.
- Milk’s prices are down 2%, its biggest decrease in over eight years.
- Fruits and veggies dipped .5%.
Thinking about firing up the grill? BBQ staples like hot dogs are 2.9% cheaper, but ground beef for burgers (+0.6%) and chicken (+0.5%) are slightly more expensive.
“Certain areas, certain commodities are still strong. Certain have weakened such as poultry and pork,” says owner John Alfano of Doris’ Italian Market in Sunrise, Florida. He says chicken and poultry are a much better value.
“Definitely compared to beef, poultry is much more reasonable right now. Chicken wings are probably the best bet right now price wise in the poultry market and great for grilling!” Alfano says.
As for key tips to save even more: consider buying store brands. Winn-Dixie says its ‘private label’ can be around 20% cheaper
And look ahead of time — online — at what deals stores are doling out
Like shopper Brianna Williams:
“If I had a taste for something but next week it’s gonna go on sale, I’ll wait and buy it [when] it’s buy one, get one free,” Williams says.”
