Well, here we are in year three of the best economic recovery of all time and thriving under Bidenomics:
The pre-Clinton 1990s. That was the last time we had to spend this much of our income simply to eat. Whether it's groceries or restaurants, food is less affordable now than it has been under Trump, Obama, Dubya, or Bill Clinton.
And we're supposed to believe that Biden rescued the economy?
Eating continues to cost more, even as overall inflation has eased from the blistering pace consumers endured throughout much of 2022 and 2023. Prices at restaurants and other eateries were up 5.1% last month compared with January 2023, while grocery costs increased 1.2% during the same period, Labor Department data show.
Relief isn't likely to arrive soon. Restaurant and food company executives said they are still grappling with rising labor costs and some ingredients, such as cocoa, that are only getting more expensive. Consumers, they said, will find ways to cope.
And the REALLY bad news, as the food experts in this article point out, food prices don't ever tend to go back down.
It's not like the McDouble is going to be $3.49 this year but then next year, with a theoretically booming Trump economy, they're going to drop it back down to $2.19. It's stuck at at least $3.49 forever.
It'll just become slightly more affordable as you scramble to make more money.
'If you look historically after periods of inflation, there's really no period you could point to where [food] prices go back down,' said Steve Cahillane, chief executive of snack giant Kellanova, in an interview. 'They tend to be sticky.'
Yeah, it looks like the dollar menu, which was already a dying breed, has been officially stomped out for good thanks to Bidenomics.
So, when we say it's the highest percent of income spent on food in 3 decades, what does that look like?
Latest statistics show that under President Biden, Americans are having to spend 11.3% of their income on food.
You're also getting less bang for your buck with your food dollar thanks to shrinkflation.
But at least our waistlines should be getting slimmer, right?
I wish.
This has led to fewer people eating out, people buying more generic brands, and cutting back on snacks. Again, you'd think we'd at least be healthier from this cutback, but I don't see that happening either.
Gary Pilnick, chief executive of WK Kellogg, said the company has been working to market cereals such as Frosted Flakes and Froot Loops to pressured consumers. An ad campaign launched in 2022, for example, encouraged consumers to eat cereal for dinner, pitching it as an easy, inexpensive alternative that, combined with milk and fruit, costs less than $1 per serving. 'Give chicken the night off,' the campaign's tagline says.
Yeah, they're encouraging you to eat cereal for supper instead of a full meal.
Who do they think I am?
Jerry Seinfeld?
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