Food price inflation is rising at an alarming rate, with the annual rate en route to becoming the highest in recent years, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).
The 20-year historical average CPI stands at 2.4 percent.
Prices for restaurant purchases, designated as “food-away-from-home” in the CPI, increased 0.3 percent in March 2022, a 6.9 percent increase from March 2021, the USDA reported.
Prices for grocery store and supermarket food purchases, designated as “food-at-home” in the CPI, increased 1.5 percent from February to March 2022, and were 10 percent higher than in March 2021.
Food-at-home prices are expected to increase by 5 to 6 percent in 2022, with food-away-from-home rising by 5.5 to 6.5 percent.
The 12-month prices of meat, poultry, and fish rose by 13.8 percent in March 2022; eggs rose by 11.2 percent; dairy products rose by 7 percent; fats and oils by 14.9 percent; fruits and vegetables by 8.5 percent; sugar and sweets by 8 percent; cereals and bakery products by 9.4 percent; nonalcoholic beverages by 8 percent; and other foods by 10 percent.
“Given exceptionally tight labor markets and already-elevated inflationary pressure from commodity prices prior to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, we suspect food inflation will remain firm in months ahead,” the analysts said.
“It is critical to point out that if we allow the tillage of CRP acres, the marginal at best benefit to crop production will be coupled with a significant and detrimental impact on producers’ efforts to mitigate climate change and maintain the long-term health of their land,” the agency said in its response.