Oil and Grain Costs Way Down, But Consumer Food Prices Still Up
Source: Renewable Fuels Association

The release of the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for October proves what too many Americans already have learned the hard way: input costs for food processors are way down but the prices they charge grocery shoppers continue to climb. Prices for virtually everything consumers buy – gasoline, airline tickets, clothing – dropped in October, except food prices.

According to a report, “Why Aren’t Food Companies Reducing Prices?,“ released today by the Renewable Fuels Association, the excuse for these prices hikes given by big food companies does not pass the smell test. Particularly when you consider that these price hikes are not necessary. Wegmans, a prominent East Coast grocery store chain, recently said no to rising prices charged by big food processors. By imposing price cuts throughout its stores, Wegmans estimates it will save their shoppers’ families between $40 and $60 per month. If such savings could be realized by every American family, they could collectively save up to $7 billion a month.

+ Full Report (PDF; 156 KB)

This entry was posted on Sunday, November 23rd, 2008 at 10:28 am and is filed under Consumer issues, Energy, Food and agriculture. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.