NEW YORK CITY – American consumers complain that they feel the bite of inflation hardest while grocery shopping and Utahns are no exception.
That’s the findings of a recent report by comparison shopping experts at Trace One, based on data from the U.S. Census Bureau and the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis.
Objective analysis shows that grocery prices in the U.S. are up nearly 25 percent since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020, according to the Trace One report.
Overall, the report states that food prices have surged since 2020 at the fastest rate since the 1970s. In the period between August 2021 and August 2022 alone, non-restaurant food prices spiked by an astonishing 13.5 percent.
Back in 2022, the Bureau of Economic Analysis reported that the average annual cost of non-restaurant food for each Utahn was $3,112. That cost has now jumped by more than $1,000 to $4,606, according to a recent nationwide study of average household take-home pay compared to annual grocery expenditures.
That study, compiled by Coupons4Real.com, found that Utah ranked 15th in a list of the most expensive states for grocery shopping, with the average Utah spending 5.89 percent of his or her income on non-restaurant food stuffs.
That ranking listed Idaho as the most expensive state for grocery shopping, with the average cost for non-restaurant food being 7.44 percent of income or about $4,860. The second and third place rankings for most expensive groceries went to New Mexico (6.82 percent of income or about $4,530) and Hawaii (6.81 percent of an generally higher average income or about $5,885).
The states of Montana, Maine, Arizona, Alaska, Oregon, Nevada and West Virginia complete the top ten list of the most expensive states for grocery shopping in descending order.
Of course, while those costs are calculated on national averages, Utah has a lot more mouths to feed than the American average.
In 2021, the U.S. Census Bureau reported that the average size of a family in Utah was 3.51 people, the largest out of any state. Nationwide, the average family size was 3.15 people.
“Grocery bills can quietly drain family finances,” said Panayotis Nikolaidis, the chief executive officer and founder of Savings United. “It’s easy to overlook how much food costs, especially when prices vary across states.
“What might seem like a minor expense in isolation can, over time, erode saving and limit financial flexibility.”
Experts advise common sense solutions to avoid overspending on groceries.
Those include planning meals, making menus and sticking to them.
They also advise consumers to compare prices across stores; opt for store brands whenever possible; and buy staples in bulk.