A new monthly feature here at Frugal Upstate is to keep track of a few key grocery ingredients and see what happens to the prices over time. Each month somewhere around the middle of the month (oops, I’m a bit late for Oct) I will be posting the prices and show the change (if any) from the previous month.
All items were priced at Aldi’s–which is the lowest priced grocery chain in my area.
October Grocery
Price Benchmark
Item Sept 2011 Oct 2011
Sugar (5lbs) $2.69 $2.39
Flour (white, 5lbs) $1.65 $.89
Milk (2%, Gallon) $2.15 $2.15
Eggs (Lrg, 1doz) $1.55 $1.39
Butter (1lb) $2.39 $2.39
Tuna (chunk light, 5oz) $0.55 $.59
Lettuce $1.29 $ 1.39
Gr Beef (80/20, per lb) $2.79 $2.89
Chicken (BS Breasts, per lb) $2.49 $2.48
Bread (white sandwich) $0.79 $.89
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Prices on these staples have remained pretty stable so far…the exceptions are flour, sugar & eggs each going down a bit (baking season anyone?!?) and tuna beef & chicken edging up.
Are there any items you’d like to see added to the benchmark? Would having other stores included be beneficial?
{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
Here in Maine…our milk is $4.39 a gallon! WOW- $2.15. I believe $4.39 is the minimum. And we have a lot of cows in Maine- just like in NY!
CRAZY!!!!
I want to scan things with my scanner app on my smart phone when i go grocery shopping next to see the comparison. Funny I have not gone grocery shopping in about a month. I stocked up so well that my hubby has gone to get some milk for me. I am participating in a organic food coop at the Chiropractorsfor my fresh fruit and veg. $20 a week, enough for my family of five! I do grocery shop for work weekly, I may need to budget extra time to scan
I find this a good indication of price and whether things are increasing or decreasing. I would like a smattering of other items.
Canned stewed tomatoes, frozen corn or peas, peanut butter added to the list. These would be indicators in other basic items that we use often.
I had heard that peanut butter will be taking a big jump for example. This is a big item in my budget as dh eats a fair bit of it. Here it was on sale, and I got 4 jars from normal …$ 5.48 for 2 liters. Usually dh’s brand ( no name) runs $9.98
for 2 liters. Every area has different pricing I know so just and up or down indicator is what most people will need. Our projected inflation rate here in Canada is 3.2% for the next year. Just what the rate increase for groceries will be is another story. I have been paying $2-89 for a doz. large white eggs ( why brown are 1 to 2 dollars more a dozen beats me, organic are just over $5. a dozen! ) just to give you an idea that prices vary so much from one area to another.
i shop when I can in Bonner’s Ferry ID. there I find many prices so much less than here. Others the same or even more. But cheese, milk, any dairy product, breads, butter, canned vegetables things like that are much , much less. Sometimes 1/2 the price I pay here, and it is an hour drive from here, just a few miles less than the next large town to us ( Cranbrook, B.C.).
Could you add potatoes, bagged garden salad and possibly whole chicken prices? I use Aldis here too. (Plattsburgh) interesting how the prices vary from area to area? Thanks for your posts I read them all.