• by Sarah Mahoney , Staff Writer @mahoney_sarah, August 23, 2024

 
Average dairy prices in July fell below 2023 levels. Image: Stonyfield

While grocery prices are still high, sticker shock may be in consumers’ rearview mirror: New research finds that an impressive 83% of Americans feel they have at least some control over their grocery budget.

Almost 80% say their primary store does a “good job” of providing them with value. By channel, 40% say that store is a supermarket, up from 38% in last year’s report. For 32%, that store is a mass merchandiser, such as Walmart or Target, down from 33% last year. And 9% say they primarily shop at a club, such as Costco, Sam’s or BJ’s, unchanged from a year ago.

FMI, the Food Industry Association, conducted the survey with the Hartman Group, offering a snapshot of how people navigate food costs. While it’s certainly helped that food inflation has cooled, falling below historical averages, 69% of consumers say they are very or extremely concerned with retail food inflation.

They’ve been spending about $163 per week, a figure that has held steady for 18 months.

To do so, 63% reported continually looking for deals and tweaking their approach, using different stores, products, and brands to hold down the food bill.

The number of trips to the store has also held steady, at 1.6 times per week. And the percentage of those shopping online climbed from 64% to 67%.

The report also cites encouraging projections from the USDA, which expects food-at-home prices to increase by only a percentage point this year. Next year’s prediction calls for an increase of just 0.7%.

“Shoppers report that one of the few parts of their household budgets they can control is their grocery spending and that through taking advantage of deals, promotions or shopping around, they continue to find value,” writes Leslie G. Sarasin, president and chief executive officer of FMI, in the report. “While we understand shoppers’ concerns about the price of food on store shelves, our U.S. Grocery Shopper Sentiment Index shows consumers appreciate the ability to find value in their grocery shopping and enjoy grocery shopping, a trend we expect to continue as food inflation cools.”

Food prices are getting a closer look this week after Vice President Kamala Harris said she would make a ban on price-gouging in the food and grocery industry a priority if her presidential campaign is successful.

The FMI responded, noting that inflation, not price gouging, has been behind the sharp rise in food prices over the last several years.

"It is both inaccurate and irresponsible to conflate an illegal activity like price gouging -- a defined legal term in which specific violations of trade practices law occur -- with inflation,” Sarasin said in a statement. “Americans should feel confident that the food industry has zero tolerance for deceptive practices like price gouging, an illegal activity that has no place in our stores and is inconsistent with the way the food industry conducts its business of feeding American families.”