After more than a year into the coronavirus pandemic, food prices are expected to continue to increase.
In March, the Economic Research Service for the U.S. Department of Agriculture predicted that grocery store prices would rise 1 to 2% in 2021.
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Patrick Penfield, professor of practice-supply chain management at the Whitman School of Management for Syracuse University, also told
"Good Morning America" prices would continue to increase.
“We had a suspicion that prices were going to go up. But I don’t think we realized how bad it was going to be,” he said. “The whole supply chain is increasing and nobody wants to absorb that cost. So unfortunately the person or people that are going to bear it are the consumers.”
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ February Consumer Price Index data, the price shoppers pay for groceries has increased 3.5% over the last 12 months.
For a a family of four, that could cost upwards of an extra $500 per year, the Department of Agriculture estimated.
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Due to an increase in consumer demand, stores across the nation extended hours of operation and capacity, while many chose to eat at home rather than at restaurants. All of these changes are likely contributing to an increase in prices.
“I don’t think anybody realized -- the magnitude of issues that we’re seeing within the supply chain right now,” Penfield added. “And that’s something that we’ll get through.”
Experts said there are different ways to lower your shopping bill, including stocking up and buying the product when the price is right.
“If you want to stay on budget, you’ve got to think about what you routinely use. And if you see it on sale, you certainly need to buy it in bulk,” Amy Keating, a registered dietitian who tests food Consumer Reports, said.
Keating added that it is essential to shop for products on sale and buy items in smaller stores.
“Other grocery stores that you may have not even considered, like smaller groceries, even drugstores sometimes have sales,” Keating said.
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