Fire up the grill. It's a summer tradition and in 2026, it is costing you more. A lot more.
Anyone who has had folks over for a barbecue recently has almost certainly noticed higher prices at the grocery store.
The cost of hot dogs are up more than 18% from a year ago. Ground beef has risen almost 15%, and soda has soared north of 11%, according to retail data provider Spins. Even barbecue sauce has jumped close to 12%.
And when it comes time to fire up that summer grill, you are really feeling it with beef due to tighter cattle herds and supply constraints.
“Most of what we’re seeing now in the food price chain probably predates the (Iran) conflict,” Ken Foster, a professor of agricultural economics at Purdue University, said. “We’re cautiously waiting to see what the June numbers might show as they come out in terms of ... the extent to which energy shocks in the Strait of Hormuz and shipping blockades and so forth are going to impact food prices.”
Stew Leonard Jr. is the President and CEO of Stew Leonard's, a highly experiential, family-owned chain of eight farm-fresh grocery stores located in the Northeast, and says he's caught in the middle between his suppliers and his shoppers.
"Sales are brisk, customers are buying, but they're also complaining, OK? They're complaining about the prices of food right now and not only just food, but I think their overall expenses in their normal lives," Leonard explains.
A combination of factors including the Iran war to bad weather are pushing up grocery prices.
Cal Poly agribusiness professor Ricky Volpe says food is going to become less affordable, and consumers should be prepared for it.
Overall food prices in the U.S. have increased by 3.2% compared to a year ago. When broken down by category, dining out costs 3.6% more, while groceries rose by 2.9%. The numbers are even worse going back to 2022. Overall food prices are roughly 20.3% higher than they were four years ago.
Those rising prices are forcing many Americans to make difficult choices, including 79-year-old disabled veteran John Atwater in Durham, North Carolina.
"I had to really tighten up on my going places and buying stuff," he told ABC News. "I mean it's the gas prices are really, for me, they are just a real inconvenience."
Prices for some foods remained more or less flat or declined over 12 months. Milk and chicken dipped slightly. Egg prices fell 39% as farmers rebuilt flocks that were decimated by an ongoing bird flu outbreak.
Food prices and broader inflation are likely to feature prominently in November’s midterm elections. During his 2024 campaign, President Donald Trump often cited the prices of bacon, cereal, crackers and other groceries as reasons why voters should return him to the White House.
Some food producers say they’re struggling now because of higher fuel costs. The Southern Shrimp Alliance, which represents shrimpers in eight states, said some boats haven’t left the dock this spring because they can’t catch enough shrimp to compensate for the cost of diesel.
Fuel typically makes up 30% to 50% of the costs for U.S. shrimpers, but because they supply only 6% of the shrimp that Americans consume, they have limited ability to raise prices or add surcharges for fuel, the organization said.
Higher fuel prices may also be impacting food costs in other ways. Part of April’s 5% annual increase in prices for nonalcoholic beverages may be due to the petroleum derivative that goes into making plastic bottles, Foster said.
“It’s possible some of that’s starting to seep down the supply chain and get into those prices,” he said.
