ORLANDO, Fla. – Food inflation is still around in the U.S., but good job growth and somewhat negligible price hikes for popular party foods will make for a more affordable Super Bowl than we’ve had in recent years, according to Wells Fargo’s latest Agri-Food Intelligence report.
U.S. companies employed around 2.3 million more workers in January 2024 than they did a year prior, the report states. Average wage growth rose 4.5% in that time, with the extra $1.28 per hour bringing average hourly pay to $29.97, Wells Fargo said.
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As far as price changes, inflation for food at home was up 1.3% from January 2023 to 2024, manageable in comparison to the 5.3% increase of inflation for food consumed away from home, according to the report.
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Wings are going to be a great option this year, the report suggests. Though small and bony, fresh and frozen chicken wings currently average $3.26 and $3.17 per pound, marking respective price drops of around 5% and 11% compared to January 2023, Wells Fargo said.
Beef will cost you more than ever, though. According to the report, prices for sirloin are up 2.3% from January 2023, averaging $9.35 per pound early last month, while ground beef prices rose nearly 12% year-over-year, going for as much as $4.25 per pound lately.
If you like seafood, shrimp prices are down 6.4% from January 2023, averaging $8.84 per pound last month; the report attributes this to strong production among global shrimp producers.
Special mentions include a 6% price increase in your average tortilla chips, a 5% increase among potato chips and a fairly flat 1% increase for guacamole and other avocado dips, all comparing December 2023 data to December 2022. Beer prices were up 0.7% toward the end of December 2023 — averaging $1.75 a pint — while prices for soft drinks in that time period appeared dependent on whether the soda was sold in single-serve cans or two-liter bottles, going slightly lower in the latter due to plastic being cheaper than aluminum.
Soft drink pricing has placed focus on the wide gap between the price for single cans and 2-liter bottles. Late December 2023 data showed soft drinks in a 12-ounce can priced at $0.57, up 4.8% from year end 2022. In contrast, the same soft drinks in a 2-liter bottle carried a price of $2.11, down 0.8% from December 2022. The price differential has been driven by the cost of aluminum coupled with the consumer preference for the convenience of single cans. It should be noted that soft drinks as a category have seen the highest food inflation spike since the start of COVID in 2020 – with the 12-ounce can category up 57% and the 2-liter bottle category having increased by 33% since that time.
Super Bowl food spending expected to be strong | Wells Fargo Agri-Food Intelligence (excerpt)
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