Why are groceries SO expensive right now?

BRIDGETTE MOORE, A 40-YEAR-OLD MOTHER OF FIVE from Lake Park, Ga., has noticed that her family’s grocery bill is much higher these days—way over her $200 weekly budget.

- NIK POPLI

To keep her finances under control, she’s had to buy less and get more selective in her shopping for family meals. “I haven’t had to work since 2009, and now with five kids, it is becoming more and more difficult to afford basic necessities,” she says. “I didn’t expect to be in this situation, and it is a struggle to make ends meet.”

Although overall inflation is starting to cool, shoppers like Moore haven’t seen much releif. Grocery prices were up 11.8% in December compared with those a year earlier. Grocery inflation declined from November to December, but prices have been rising sharply since early 2021. Nearly every food group costs more than it did a year ago: grade A eggs are up 138%; margarine, up 43.8%; butter sticks, up 38.5%; all-purpose flour, up 34.5%; and spaghetti and macaroni up 31.3%, according to the most recent Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) data.