Will DelVal Residents Purchase Organic Turkeys for Thanksgiving Amid Rising Food Prices?
With Thanksgiving almost upon us, will families splurge on organic turkeys instead of regular ones for the iconic meal.
Inflation has been rising in the Delaware Valley and throughout the U.S. Some families are concerned about whether they can afford to have this alternative turkey. For example, at Whole Foods Market, an Organic Heirloom Whole Turkey is $4.99/lb but offers a discounted price of $2.49/lb for Amazon Prime members.
While most families usually purchase traditional turkeys for Thanksgiving, many stores, including Giant, make sure they have enough in stock well before the holiday season.
“We start working on our turkey order early in the year to make sure we are set to meet the needs of our customers and ordered more turkeys than we sold last year, so we are confident in our supply,” Ashley Flower, spokeswoman for The Giant Company, told PennLive.
DelVal residents also must consider purchasing other side dishes for Thanksgiving. According to a study, Pennsylvania’s spicy candied sweet potatoes (which requires canned sweet potatoes, pecans, pumpkin pie spice, mini marshmallows, and orange juice concentrate) are 10.49 percent more expensive this year. This famous side dish now costs $30.97 this year, compared to $27.72 last year.
While the pandemic impacted the past two Thanksgivings, some families may wait another year to host a large gathering because of the increase in food costs.
Inflation has wreaked havoc on food prices across the country, with a rise of 11.2 percent for all food costs this September compared to last year. The cost of groceries, in particular soaring by 13 percent, and for this reason, it appears families will sacrifice some of their usual traditional dishes or reduce how many people will be invited to this year’s meal. That is, according to a comprehensive study by Usko, a new free app that lets users analyze their Amazon spending and see how much products they regularly purchase have gone up due to inflation.
The company identified signature Thanksgiving dishes from each state and then broke down the ingredients for each to determine how much more each dish would cost this year compared to last year.
A survey of 1,000 respondents by Usko also revealed that over 21 percent of people believe the higher cost of ingredients would impact their plans this Thanksgiving. Indeed, for those wondering how much they spend either in-store or on sites like Amazon, a quick comparison with last year’s bank statement will likely prompt them to make changes to this year’s Thanksgiving meal. Those respondents also said they would be prepared to cancel the traditional Thanksgiving menu and choose a cheaper and low-cost meal instead.
In addition, over a third of those hosting Thanksgiving, this November plan to invite fewer guests to save money. Of those who are cooking, 68 percent also say they expect to have fewer leftovers this year, given the increasing food.
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