NPR

Grocery Prices Have Been Falling. Did You Notice?

For 19 months in a row, food prices in America's supermarkets fell compared to a year earlier. This is good news for shoppers but has weighed on the grocery industry and the people who grow our food.
Retail food prices have just been through the longest period of deflation in about 60 years.

Food prices in America were down for the longest period in about 60 years.

Wait, what?

It's not something that shoppers seemed to have noticed much.

"Are you serious? Really?" says Michelle German, holding a bag of groceries and wine at a Harris Teeter store in Washington, D.C. "I just spent about $40 dollars on four items and I'm like, wait, how did I spend that much money?"

But a number of foods — over the course of 2016 and into 2017. For 19 months straight, the U.S. government reported declines in the food consumer price index, which compares supermarket prices with what they were a year earlier.

You’re reading a preview, subscribe to read more.

More from NPR

NPR4 min read
From Pandemic To Protests, The Class Of 2024 Has Been Through A Lot
Pomp and circumstance again fall victim to circumstance for some students in the graduating class of 2024, as protests over the war in Gaza threaten to disrupt commencement ceremonies.
NPR3 min read
What's Making Us Happy: A Guide To Your Weekend Viewing And Reading
Each week, Pop Culture Happy Hour guests and hosts share what's bringing them joy. This week: Vanderpump Rules recaps, the book The Worst Ronin, and a duet by Pavarotti and Celine Dion.
NPR2 min read
Brian Wilson Of The Beach Boys Is Being Placed Under A Legal Conservatorship
A Los Angeles Superior Court judge approved the conservatorship Thursday, noting that Brian Wilson suffers from "a major cognitive disorder." Wilson has agreed to the conservatorship.

Related Books & Audiobooks