Grocery Prices Have Finally Fallen for the First Time in a Year

After years of increases followed by months of plateauing, grocery prices have finally fallen for the first time in a year.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics released a report that revealed prices have dropped on some grocery staples from March to April 2024. The new government data highlighting this modest decrease of 0.2% offers a silver lining for consumers who have struggled to provide necessities for their families.

Among the items witnessing a price drop since last year, according to CNN, were ham and cheese, which saw over 3% reduction each. Seafood and potatoes fell around 2%, while milk and rice prices were down around 1% each. Egg prices declined by a significant 9%, coffee prices went down 2%, and apple prices were reduced by 12.7%

On the other hand, prices for steaks, hot dogs, fruits, and veggies have risen, as have eating-out costs. ABC News spoke to Dr. Michael Swanson, Wells Fargo’s chief agriculture economist, who discussed how eating out has become even more costly.

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“It surprises people because it’s kind of a new development in the last couple of years where we finally saw the dollars exceed spending away from home,” Swanson explained. “When you buy food away from home, 70% of that is overhead and labor, so you’re really only buying 30% of the food with the dollar that you spend.”

He added that while the costs of some foods have been reduced, consumers are making the decision to eat at home more to save costs. Swanson states that this pinch will “push people to prepare more meals at home and take them with them, because it’s such a big premium right now to be eating away from home with this inflation rate differential.”

Supermarket retailers like ALDI are trying to cut costs for shoppers. For example, ALDI announced that it will further lower its everyday prices on more than 250 summer essentials, from picnic necessities to barbecue basics. The company says this shift will surpass $100 million in consumer savings through Labor Day.

“ALDI is always looking for ways to help customers save money, but with more experts warning of persistent inflation, the time was right to deliver even greater discounts on our already low prices for the second year in a row,” said Dave Rinaldo, president of ALDI U.S. in a press release. “We don’t want food prices to hold people back from getting together with friends and family or spending time outdoors this season.”