The average cost of Thanksgiving dinner this year could be 14% higher according to the Farm Bureau’s annual study, also noting it was the highest number in 36 years of doing the survey.
The American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF), also known as the Farm Bureau, is an insurance business and lobbying organization that represents the American agriculture industry.
The Farm Bureau noted, “The average cost of this year’s classic Thanksgiving feast for 10 is $53.31 or less than $6.00 per person. This is a $6.41 or 14% increase from last year’s average of $46.90. The centerpiece on most Thanksgiving tables – the turkey – costs more than last year, at $23.99 for a 16-pound bird. That’s roughly $1.50 per pound, up 24% from last year.”
The Farm Bureau said the “volunteer shoppers” reviewed pricing from Oct. 26 to Nov. 8, about two weeks before most supermarket stores started lowering the price of frozen turkeys.
According to AFBF Senior Economist Veronica Nigh, numerous factors have added to the rise in the average cost of dinner for Thanksgiving, 2021. These include vital disturbances to the country’s economy and chains of supply over the last twenty months, inflation, problems forecasting demand during the epidemic, and high worldwide demand for food, particularly beef.
Due to the pandemic, customers are cooking and eating more at home, resulting in greater supermarket demand and more high-priced retail food costs in 2020 and 2021, compared to pricing in 2019.
This year’s average national cost was computed using pricing data from all 50 states and Puerto Rico from 218 surveys. Volunteer shoppers from the Farm Bureau examined pricing both in person and online using grocery store apps and websites. The Farm Bureau claimed that their shoppers were looking for the best available pricing without taking advantage of purchase deals or coupons.