I don’t know how they think we’re all going to survive with these prices.
Groceries will blame inflation and whatnot, yet they’re printing record profits.
That’s because the truth is the other way around. It’s the hoarding of record profits by the corporate class what drives the inflation
That’s their point.
Margins are down.
. So it isn’t the stores gouging you. Somewhere in the chain. Someone is though
somehow these poor struggling grocers can still buy one another for twenty five billion dollars.
That’s all debt. That isn’t from profits.
Their margins are low and declining.
The point being is the cash grab is further up the line. If it was the grocery stores, we’d see margins increasing. Food has doubled to tripled in many cases and their margins went down.
overall sales are up, prices are waaay tf up.
gross margins are down slightly, but they’re taking that 27.7% (vs 28.1%) from a larger pie.
profits are up.
Grocery has some of the lowest margins of any industry. It’s not your local store milking you and I doubt it’s the local farmer.
The point being is the cash grab is further up the line
It’s certainly not the farmers getting paid more.
If anything, the agrifood business that they sell to are pushing the farm gate price down, while at the same time input costs continue to rise.
I buy beef from my local farmer. His cost of went up and his prices have adjusted. He’s 3x more expensive but about about to quit because he can’t turn a profit.
I also buy local and they’re thinking about calling it quits. You work all day and margins are so low, they can’t keep fixing / replacing what breaks without increasing debt.
That is the issue he is running into. He has tripled the prices but his margin is lower than before.
I get many people want to blame the stores but this problem is further up the chain and someone is miking the system. I have two customers who are grocery store chains and they have said, the only reason they are profitable is they can’t hire people and they have to use corporate staff to help in their stores. I know the director of security has to stock shelves two days a week.
I am not one for the government getting in the middle of everything but they need to audit the supply chain and figure out what is really going.
Tell that to the billionaires who’s net value doubled in 12 months.
What grocery billionaire are you referencing?
Wife has been canning for a few years now and we have a pantry of fruits, veggies, and dehydrated food. She goes to the farmers markets during harvest time and goes to town on entire cases of tomatoes, corn, beans, etc. That will last all year for our family of 5. We also pay a friend to raise a pig on her ranch and butcher that once a year. Just got ours (over 400 lbs!). Pork is A LOT cheaper that way. Haven’t found anyone to go half or a quarter in on a cow. We also would need another deep freezer and don’t really have room for it.
We also meal plan weekly so we only buy groceries for what we need to make meals. That saves a ton of money as you aren’t wasteful as much. Oh and we either do pick up or delivery as you spend more when you’re in the store and see things you want but don’t need.
We make almost everything we can from scratch. Wife recently found a recipe for baked oyster crackers with butter and seasoning on them that make dirt cheap snacks and they’re fantastic. The store brand oyster crackers are $1 for 16oz. That’s almost cheap enough to not make those from scratch too. We haven’t bothered yet.
I’ve always been interested in the idea of canning, but it’s not really a thing in the UK. I know that veg is cheaper and gas is more expensive here than in America but still, surely it costs so much money to can things that you can’t be saving much? Is it only worth it if the produce was in season and therefore really cheap?
Definitely not about cost on the veggies. At best it’s break even compared to the store. It’s more about knowing it’s the veggie and water only. Or seasoning too if you like them a certain way. We’ve found corn to be higher quality too. Plus, where we live peaches are fabulous and better than anywhere else in the country so we get to can the best and control the amount of syrup used so they’re healthier. Sorry Georgia, you don’t actually have the best peaches.
Totally get that. Much nicer to know you’re not eating too much processed crap.
Jealous of the peaches!
I’ve always been interested in the idea of canning, but it’s not really a thing in the UK
I suspect it’s more common in the more rural areas.
Or with the city people who manage to have an allotment.
I’m in a rural area, it’s really not a thing! Especially not pressure canning with ball jars. People do make pickles and chutneys etc but those are preserved with vinegar and we use kilner jars with a rubber seal to store them. I’ve never once met anyone who has pressure canned vegetables.
When I was a kid (20 years ago) my parents would make pickles, and some assorted pickled veggies. Usually the veggies would come from a farm around us or an auction where you could buy trays of veggies about the size of a flat of canned drinks. They would also do some fruits in syrup, mainly ones that my uncle would bring us from another part of the country where him and his neighbours had fruit tree.
When I think of canning vegetables, cucumber pickles are the first thing that comes to mind.
Yeah and we obviously have those here although you could just make them in any old jar and keep them in the fridge. The thing that seems to be quite different in America to the UK is the whole pressure canning scene. We do have similar food but it’s all in tins, nobody really makes it themselves and I’m not even sure where you’d get hold of a pressure canner, you’d probably have to import it.
Yeah, I’m making a lot myself too, but I sadly don’t have the storage space for large amounts of food. And the homemade goods are often more expensive, unless you can get veggies on the cheap from a farmer
We probably aren’t saving much on the veggies overall for sure. Some are cheaper than canned but others aren’t. However, we know exactly what’s in it and we buy it once a year so we’ve budgeted for it.
That’s the way to do it. Raising pigs or cows, if you have the space or know someone who does, is way cheaper than store bought pork/beef.
Pork is the cheapest meat on the shelf right now
Depends on your location. Where I live, chicken is cheaper.
It is, and it’s even cheaper if you raise your own. Plus it’s better quality meat.
i’m gonna assume this post refers to the US’ prices.
it’s definetely noticeable in germany, but i’ll manage. my worker’s union is currently negotiating prices with my employer, and so far it’s looking pretty good.
but i pray for you guys, they really don’t seem to make life worth living over there.
Could easily be Canada too
ETA: Here’s a good video on Canada’s and the states’ inflation problems from an outside perspective.
Yes, sorry. I’m in the US.
I went to Germany this year and couldn’t believe how cheap groceries were, easily half the price of Canada plus your salaries are way higher on average
with a fair amount of help. food pantry, when i can get there–once or twice a month, for a bag of close or past-date produce and other perishables, and a few other things; and ‘leftovers’ brought to me by others a 2-3 times a week.
my ‘grocery bill’ hasn’t gone up–because it can’t. i spend the same, but get a lot less for it.
Aldi.
If you have one near you, get your staples from there. It’s so much cheaper than Kroger, Costco, Publix, and Target.
Shout out to WinCo also. As a heads up they only take cash/debit though, not credit.
No Aldi in WA State.
Aldi is a great option when you don’t need something specific, like a cut of meat. Or a single lemon instead of 50 of them. I do Aldi first then Wegmans or Price Rite for whatever is not there.
Lidl is even better. Aldi is more for snack by me. I still goto Stop and Shop for niche things.
I’m lucky enough to live near both and they’re the only things keeping me eating relatively healthily while I lack access to a full kitchen…
Not sure if it’s just me but my grocery spending hasn’t changed in the last year. It’s definitely more expensive then say 2 years ago but seems like prices have stabilized.
I cook often so most of what I buy are produce and it’s generally cheaper than other stuff.
I agree. On one hand I look at prices of stuff and think “damn is it really this much now? Was half this price last year”. But on the other hand, my shopping receipts really haven’t doubled since a year ago, I don’t feel like they increased at all… But I also buy produce and cook for myself most of the time.
Same. Junk food is higher it seems but that stuff is garbage anyway. My grocery bills have been leveled off for a long time buying staples.
I haven’t changed my shopping habits, but I definitely notice the ripoffs of significantly higher prices on some of the same food items I’ve been buying for years. Overall it’s still much cheaper to buy groceries and make your own food than the vast majority of restaurants and such.
Fast food prices have gotten more noticeably higher than groceries have in my area. So I assume that most of the people I hear complaining the loudest about “Inflation” are the ones who eat fast food as a staple of their diet.
Nah, I remember when I could fill an entire cart with food and it’d be about $75 way back in the ancient days of 2019. Now I’d have to pay double to do that and even then I might end up with less food.
Yeah if you actually cook food it’s not that bad. It’s frozen food and junk food which has exploded in price
We are in Canada. I scratch cook everything and we grow the vast majority of our own food. Most grocery shopping is staple stuff like flour and sugar. Our grocery bill has trippled in the past 2 years and it’s still rising. Our gardens have gotten considerably bigger to make up for it.
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Left it all behind and moved to a cheaper country
Where did you move to?
South Korea. As long as you speak English you can become a teacher. Took me about 3 years to become comfortable with the language, at which point you can move on to other careers.
Salary is less but cost of living is way less. Also very fun. Other countries are good too, so take your pick. China is cheaper, Japan is a little more expensive. South Korea is a little grindy, so one of those two might be better. You can also go Europe or Africa if that’s your taste.
Were vegetarians and don’t buy any prepared foods or much processed food. Inflation hasn’t been uniform. Rice, beans, tofu, and a lot of vegetables are at or near the same price as pre pandemic.
My partner and I are mostly-vegetarian and it’s insane how much stuff still costs. Soy milk is constantly $2-3 a half gallon more than cow milk, veggies are expensive unless you’re only getting rice and beans, and don’t even get me started on meat substitutes
Tofu easily doubled here in BC since then
Super Hans is the man
Meat = almost eliminated from my diet except for frozen ground chicken that’s 10 dollars.
Potato chips = replaced by crackers, much cheaper.
Vegetables = all frozen now
Have you looked into the one time expense of buying an air fryer? You can make your own chips/fries/etc which are both cheaper and healthier. Obviously you have to buy the appliance but it pays off in terms of health and groceries eventually. Like, crackers are usually loaded with crap ingredients. You could air fry some potatoes in a little spray of healthy oil for a dollar or two and do your wallet and your heart a solid AND you’re still getting your daily allotment of potatoes lol
I got an air fryer for Christmas and it is literally life changing
Would love one but the place I live has a 1000 watt limit before I blow a fuse.
You don’t need the gadget. You can make these things with a normal stove and oven. As someone who cooks a lot someone gave me one of these for xmas. It’s a damn convection oven. A tiny one worth way too much money. Learn to use the appliances you have and stop with the useless gadgets.
It is a convection oven but most people don’t have a fancy oven with a convection oven. Yeah you can make it in the oven but it comes out better in the air fryer and mine heats in literally one minute, I can use it in summer because it doesn’t add nearly as much heat to my house, etc. It’s way more convenient than using the massive oven for a plate of fries or something and I can even cook an entire pizza in the air fryer I got using the bake setting, which again is just much easier and more convenient for me.
Cooking with an air fryer is so fast and brainless, and certain food turns out perfectly in it. Salmon, Brussels sprouts, tofu, fries, chicken nugger, frozen veggies, baked potato, just some examples. It’s not the same as using an oven. And I don’t like cooking or dishes so I end up making way more food at home since I got the air fryer.
The only thing I use my oven for now is pizza and bacon
Food is also just way healthier air fried, so much less grease
Usually I would agree with the useless gadget argument but have to say hard disagree from me on this one
Fine. When you’re poor and having a hard time with food the last thing you need is a couple of hundred dollar gadget so you can cook. Healthier in an air fryer than any oven or stove top…not likely.
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I haven’t reached the point yet where I’m personally dumpster diving, but I have a friend who has an inside connection at a major grocery store. They call when it’s time to take out the garbage, set it outside the compactor, and my friend swings by to snag it. It’s incredible how much gets thrown out. He preserves what can’t be used immediately and gives it away to those who don’t have a problem with the source. I’ve benefited from a 5 lb bag of jerky and a box full of dried fruits, veggies, and other items.
Otherwise, I’m always on the lookout for sales and deals. When I find one I stock up, like the one going on now at Amazon for Sweet Sue canned chicken that worked out to 78 cents for a 5oz can.
I’m fortunate enough to have a few acres and access to water at agricultural rates, so I grow enough produce to supply myself and a few other families that subscribe to my farm-to-home service. It’s enough to pay the costs and buy the grandkids some nice presents, but I ain’t getting rich off it.
food stamps
also, wtf is up with the food co-op?
All the wealthy retired hippies shop there. Their prices are crazy. All the employees make a smidge over minimum. Except the managers make a bit more. But still.
I’ve yet to go to a coop that wasn’t much more expensive for questionable quality food.
$8 a pound for pumpkin seeds. Can you believe that? It’s one step above what you’d pick out of a compost pile. Very nice and clean of course, but still. It should be dirt cheap. But no.
Fortunately for us we make a lot of money so we don’t look at prices.
Same here as well. I’ll still try to find cheaper options but I won’t remove an ingredient from the cart because the total is too much.
I buy staples as cheaply as I can, and most other things I only buy on sale. Plan my cooking for the week around that.
I continue to be spoiled by Costco’s low prices. Seriously, check them out if you can.
I also imagine that similar wholesale clubs also have lower prices, but I cannot say from 1st hand experience.
It’s low per unit, but high up front. And you gotta hope you don’t get tired of whatever you bought
Aldi is also great if you’ve got one near you and are not able (or don’t need) to buy in bulk.
If you haven’t shopped there before, they’re a German based chain that’s spread across the rest of Europe and a lot of North America and almost-only sells their own store-brand products. Their prices are similar to Walmart and Kroger store brand but, IMO, they’re of much better quality. As a person with ADHD, I find shopping there to be much less anxiety inducing… it’s a grocery store the size of a Walgreens. If I need pickles, there’s one brand with five different cuts in three flavors; there’s only two kinds of ketchup, six kinds of fruit juice, four different laundry detergents… one kind of paper plates. Also, the cashiers are scary fast.
I can complete my weekly shop in like twenty minutes without a headache or back pain. It’s genuinely like someone designed a grocery store just for me and it’s cheap AF… just remember to bring your own reusable bags and a quarter. You’ll need a quarter to unlock the shopping cart from the rack. You get your coin back when you return your cart like a civilized human being. They have paper bags for sale at the register for like 28¢ if you forget to bring your own.
I agree, Aldi is great. Especially for 1-2 person households.
Aldi >>>> Costco
A lot of shit at Costco isn’t even a good deal these days. People just assume it must be because they are bad at basic arithmetic. Like, there are some good deals still, but not like how it was ten years ago. These days most stuff is legitimately cheaper at Aldi.
Costco is great, but I have to force myself to shop without a cart to prevent me from buying stuff I don’t need (so I only get the essentials that I can carry).
Getting 1.5kg of cereal lasts me way longer which is amazing, when the normal grocery stores have “family size” boxes that have just been shrinking and shrinking.
We are almost exclusively Costco and WinCo for groceries. They are consistently the best places to go, price-wise.
That said, I’m getting really fucking tired of corporate greed making hard to live.
