Are your groceries expensive?

Question

I was wondering if I'm the only one...but I've noticed that certain items that I used to buy on a regular basis are quite expensive now. I hardly purchse certain things anymore because they make my grocery bill too high.
I just wanted to take a survey of sorts to see:
~>What items have risen in price in your area?
~>What items (if any) have lowered in price?
~> Where do you live? (like what part of the country)
I live in Ohio and citrus fruits are SO expensive, I can only buy a few at a time. Nuts (walnuts, cashews, almonds) are also really high.Grapes are also getting up there. For me, nothing has gone down in price.
Thanks for your replies!

WOW! In a way, I'm glad to know that I'm not the only one, but I'm still sort of sad that I'm not alone.
I try to cut costs - I shop at Sam's and Costco even though I'm single (no kids) - as much as possible and I feel like it's a losing battle.
I couldn't tell you the last time I coudl afford to buy fresh lemons or grapefruit. :-(

Answer 1

Everything is up in price, except the 5 pounds of burger I get, which is still only $10, and bagged salad mix which is $3.50. I've been buying generic everything that I can, use coupons only for things I regularly buy, and occasionally have to let the cupboard and fridge really run down. (I claim it makes me more creative, but it's getting frustrating.) Veggies are crazy though. I used to get green onions 3 bunches for $1. Now each bunch is 67 cents. I used to get parsley free, now it costs more than a bunch of cilantro. And don't even get me started on the price of lemons. I use lemons all the time, and they're a buck a piece now! Oh, this is in Cali, by the way.

Sorry for the rant, but it's so frustrating to watch our monthly food expenditures creep up week by week. The 2 of us used to spend about $300/mo. on food. Now, even scaling back, it's risen to $400/mo. Ack!

Answer 2

I definitely agree: groceries are more expensive. Living in a rural area, it is not worth my money to drive 20-30miles to a larger chain and save a few dollars. We all forget one thing: the cost of transportation has drastically increased which in turn raised the cost of items we buy off a shelf. Do not forget minimum wage has increased as well. I lived in Germany back in the 90s and gas was about $4 a gallon at the time. So, 10 years later, the U.S. is starting to become equal? We should not complain too much?

Answer 3

I LIVE IN OHIO TO AND YOUR VEYR RIGHT GROCERYS ARE GETTING EXPENSIVE I REMEMBER YOU COULD TAKE $100 BUCKS ITH YOU AN DFILL UP THE CART AND NOW YOU CANT DO THAT YOU CAN GET LIKE 10 ITEMS OR 15 AND PAY OUT $60 OR SOMTHING LIKE THAT IT'S REDICULOUS I LIKE HAMBURGER AND STEAK AND WEL STEAK CAN BE $15 A PACK AND YOU ONLY GET 2 IN A PACK AND HAMBURGER IS ABOUT THE SAME WELL YOU CAN PAY $8 BUCKS BUT THINGS ADD UP WHEN YOUR AT THE CASH REGISTER YOU KNOW AND CERAL IS HIGH TO I SAW LUCKY CHARMS AND TRICKS FOR $8 OR $10 AND IT USE TO BE $2.45 OR SOMTHING LIKE THAT BUT IF YOU REALLY WANT A HUGE BOX OF CERAL GO TO BIG LOTS THERE'S CERTAIN ONES THAT SELL FOOD AND THEY HAVE HUGE BOXES THAT LAST FOR A LONG TIME BECAUSE I CAN GO THROUGH A BOX IN A FEW MINUTES LOL,
BUT TODAY YOU JUST HAVE TO SHOP SMART

Answer 4

I am from the breakfast cereal state.......land of fruits, nuts & flakes! LITERALLY! *LOL* California joke, but produce & nuts are less expensive than many places from what I've heard, but I have nothing to compare to as I am now in nearby Nevada. I buy most everything organic & it does cost me more, but when I didn't, I noticed that although food prices have gone up, the things I like to eat most are more affordable with the same lifestyle & comparable income. The organic foods I buy are from the same sources as back home. Much of the produce is from the same countries as conventional, but California & Oregon seem to grow much of the stuff I buy that isn't imported. I could not afford to shop organic when my kids were small, but now organic foods are much more readily available & I see the cost coming down with continual popularity. I only have to shop for 2 & living in Vegas allows me to save heaps on the low cost buffets, so it balances out. GOD BLESS THOSE BUFFETS!!! ~LOL~

Answer 5

Funny you should say this! Last week I went to pick up some groceries and when I got home I said to my husband "Gosh..groceries are really going up! It's almost like we have to really make sure we don't throw a lot of things out". I noticed it on everything. Go-gurts, MILK for sure, cheese, orange juice, cream cheese...mostly everything but certainly over in the dairy area it's WOW. Nothing has lowered. NOTHING! :) I am in the CHicago area.

Answer 6

I am in Mississippi

Nuts are really expensive this year - even pecans and we are having a good pecan crop this y ear.
Milk - it is over $4.00 a gallon.
Fresh Meats - have really gone up.

I haven't seen anything going down.

We have gone from $150 a week to $200 a week easily. It is more coupon clipping and ad matching than ever now for us.

Answer 7

Yes all groceries are expensive, but especially paper products and the essentials - milk, bread, eggs.

I find nothing is ever under $3.50 - everything is at least that and more....I can spend over $80 and not feel like I bought very much every week.

Answer 8

Milk over $4.50 a gallon , Ice Cream around $5.00 a half gallon, eggs are anywhere from $1.50 to over $4.00 a dozen depending on brand! As for fresh fruit like you said, it's crazy! Meat is very expensive too. Chicken is over $2.00 lb for thighs, Pork is over$3.00 lb, and steak..........forget it! I live in Northern N.H.

Answer 9

We use coupons, shop for club sales etc...and still spend $800 a month easy. It sucks. I saw a tiny steak today for $15.99. Denver has insanity grocery prices.

Answer 10

Its eggs for us! We live in Arkansas and the eggs have gone from 95 cents to $2.19 a dozen. Pork is cheap at $1.88 lb. for boneless chops and chicken thighs are at $.88 cents a lb.