What’s driving up grocery prices and how to save: Leonard’s CEO
After September’s Consumer Price Index (CPI) indicated that food prices rose more than expected, Brad Smith examines one area where consumers have likely felt price increases: the grocery store. Stew Leonard Jr., Stew Leonard’s CEO and president, joins Wealth! to take a look at products in your shopping cart that have been hit by price increases, like eggs, and offers his tips on how to save at the grocery store.
“Customers are putting one less item in their shopping cart right now. They feel the pinch. I feel it for you,” Leonard says, noting that it’s increased costs driving up grocery prices rather than price gouging. He expects prices, which may be higher than some shoppers prefer, to hold, saying, “I think customers can look forward to some pretty steady seas out in front of them going through the holidays right now.”
Eggs have seen a recent uptick in price, which Leonard explains is a result of an outbreak of avian influenza, or the bird flu, which has affected “hundreds of millions of birds across the country” and tightened supply. He notes, “All my life, I’ve been in this retail business with our family over 50 years. Egg prices have always fluctuated all the time… The price has bumped up $1 or $2 a dozen temporarily until they get through the bird flu, but after that, you can see them settle down again.”
For shoppers looking to cut down their grocery spending, Leonard recommends watching for sales at your local store and opting for the store name rather than the name brand when you can.
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This post was written by Naomi Buchanan.
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