Sticker shock at the grocery store
Published on Mon, Oct 24, 2011 by BY PAM STEVENS | MANAGING EDITORRead More Editorial
With online bill paying and direct deposit, going to the mailbox everyday is not something that I do. It seems that opening up the mailbox twice a week is plenty these days.
My mom can’t believe that I don’t get my mail everyday. I chalk it up to old habits and the fact that her mailbox is right next to her front door.
The days that I usually get the mail is the day before the recycling goes out and Tuesdays. Why? Because I’m an ad shopper.
I like to get the Safeway, Albertsons and Haggen ads and see what’s on sale that week. Taking advantage of sale prices and “stocking up” on goods that are a great price has become my “old habit” and it saves my family a lot of money to boot.
These days I’m not sure how parents can feed their families without shopping the sales, especially when it comes to milk and other dairy products, cereal and even fruits and veggies.
Even my daughter’s favorite Lay’s Barbecue chips have soared in price. I used to be able to get them on sale for $1.88 a bag. Now I’m lucky to find them under $3. Typically their around $4. It’s insane that potato chips cost $4 a bag!
A few weeks ago a friend of mine made a comment on Facebook regarding the price of butter.
She posted, “Why does nobody talk about the fact that butter is $5 a pound? This. THIS is important people! Rise up!”
The next time I went to the grocery store I realized how right she was. How are families supposed to keep up with the rising costs of necessities, especially when so many are on the brink financially already?
According to The Associated Press, “Food prices rose 0.4 percent in September, pushed up by big increases in the dairy, cereals, and fruits and vegetables categories. Dairy prices have jumped 10.2 percent. Those increases are key reasons overall inflation jumped 3.9 percent in the 12 months that ended in September, the largest year-over-year increase in three years.”
So, it’s not all a figment of our imagination. A trip to the grocery store does cost more and trying to feed your family healthful foods such as whole grains, calcium rich milk and fresh fruits and vegetables increases those costs substantially.
“At the same time, inflation-adjusted average hourly earnings fell 0.1 percent in September, the Labor Department said Wednesday. In the last year, average inflation-adjusted hourly earnings have dropped 1.9 percent,” according to The Associated Press story.
So with inflation and the rising cost of food, many more families will be struggling to keep their heads above water.
Three years ago we were promised change but is this really the change we had in mind?
My mom can’t believe that I don’t get my mail everyday. I chalk it up to old habits and the fact that her mailbox is right next to her front door.
The days that I usually get the mail is the day before the recycling goes out and Tuesdays. Why? Because I’m an ad shopper.
I like to get the Safeway, Albertsons and Haggen ads and see what’s on sale that week. Taking advantage of sale prices and “stocking up” on goods that are a great price has become my “old habit” and it saves my family a lot of money to boot.
These days I’m not sure how parents can feed their families without shopping the sales, especially when it comes to milk and other dairy products, cereal and even fruits and veggies.
Even my daughter’s favorite Lay’s Barbecue chips have soared in price. I used to be able to get them on sale for $1.88 a bag. Now I’m lucky to find them under $3. Typically their around $4. It’s insane that potato chips cost $4 a bag!
A few weeks ago a friend of mine made a comment on Facebook regarding the price of butter.
She posted, “Why does nobody talk about the fact that butter is $5 a pound? This. THIS is important people! Rise up!”
The next time I went to the grocery store I realized how right she was. How are families supposed to keep up with the rising costs of necessities, especially when so many are on the brink financially already?
According to The Associated Press, “Food prices rose 0.4 percent in September, pushed up by big increases in the dairy, cereals, and fruits and vegetables categories. Dairy prices have jumped 10.2 percent. Those increases are key reasons overall inflation jumped 3.9 percent in the 12 months that ended in September, the largest year-over-year increase in three years.”
So, it’s not all a figment of our imagination. A trip to the grocery store does cost more and trying to feed your family healthful foods such as whole grains, calcium rich milk and fresh fruits and vegetables increases those costs substantially.
“At the same time, inflation-adjusted average hourly earnings fell 0.1 percent in September, the Labor Department said Wednesday. In the last year, average inflation-adjusted hourly earnings have dropped 1.9 percent,” according to The Associated Press story.
So with inflation and the rising cost of food, many more families will be struggling to keep their heads above water.
Three years ago we were promised change but is this really the change we had in mind?
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