Demand for food shrinking as inflation rises in US

While the rate of inflation slowed in October, so too did consumer demand – purchase volume dropped 0.4% year on year. Consumers are buying less, but they’re spending 12.7% more due to price increases.

To control spending, consumers are taking fewer trips compared to recent months, shopping in bulk where necessary, and buying fewer items overall. Consumers cutting back on purchasing, another symptom of an ailing economy, indicates they may be saving where they can now in anticipation of the upcoming holidays.

With Thanksgiving approaching, Fetch also analysed price changes to staple categories to understand how much more the holiday meal will cost this year and how consumers can make strategic adjustments to save money. In addition to the persistent inflation, a major avian flu outbreak in Europe and North America is driving up costs for frozen turkeys by 19.2%.

Across the board, price increases for the majority of Thanksgiving staples are outpacing general inflation – russet potatoes are up 29.2%, and pie-making essentials like filling and crusts are up 25.8%.

To save money, shoppers could swap out turkey for ham and/or serve sweet potatoes instead of russets.