By Kelly Hodges
Peanut butter, a staple in nearly every American household, is the latest to fall victim to grocery price hikes. According to an article in Wall Street Journal last week, peanut butter prices are expected to increase up to 30% in the weeks to come. The reason? A hot dry summer has devastated this year’s peanut crop forcing peanut butter makers to pass along the additional input costs. Major brands like Jif, Peter Pan and Skippy will all be hiking up their prices to compensate for the increased price of peanuts.
Peanut butter is just the most recent in a long line of products that have seen price hikes this year. According to the Consumer Price Index Summary, food prices have increased 4.6% over the last 12 months, and there’s no end in sight to the inflation. From yogurt to ice cream to eggs, to produce… just about every item on your grocery list costs more now than it did last year.
So what can a consumer do? Cutting out peanut butter is certainly NOT an option at our house. One just has to recognize that prices for everyday items are increasing, and factor that into the budget and make adjustments if necessary. Watching for sales and coupons becomes even more important as prices increase (see previous articles Snip Snip and Couponing in 5 steps).
And in the mean time, clear some extra space in your pantry and make sure to stock up on peanut butter before new shipments with higher peanut butter prices hit your local grocery store.
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Any opinions expressed herein are solely those of the author, and do not in any way represent the views or opinions of her employer or any other person or entity.
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