Inflation continues to eat away (no pun intended) at the food budgets of the average U.S. consumer. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) indicates the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers—a mark of how much the price of a filled-up grocery cart changes over time—increased 2.6% over the year-long period ending in October 2024.
However, there is good news to report, especially for the top-ranked snack and bakery producers. One, inflation has slowed significantly compared to previous years. In last year’s coverage of the leading companies in baking and snacks, Snack Food & Wholesale Bakery reported the BLS put the cost of the price of bread (another of the ways the agency drills down on inflation’s impact on consumers) at $1.89 at the start of 2023 (a staggering 22% increase over the course of the year). At the onset of 2024, that same price tag was $2.03—still an increase, but a much more palatable jump of about 7%.