"I just eat to survive": How consumers are dealing with rising food prices

Prices increased 0.3% in December from the month before, according to the latest consumer price index, which was released Tuesday morning from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

One item that stuck out? The cost of food consumed at home was up 0.7% for the month. Food prices were also up for the year by 2.4% — and if you go back five years, they’re up about 25%.

At Patterson Food Market, a small corner store in Baltimore, Eric Smith bought a soda for $2. Outside the store, Smith said that’s too much.

“A year ago, the same soda that I just paid for was $1.50 in the same store,” Smith laughed. “[I feel] robbed.”

Smith said he doesn’t blame the store owner, but it made him think there’s something wrong with the overall system.

Cornell University agricultural economist Chris Barrett said rising food prices make shoppers feel powerless. 

“Most of us bristle a little bit when we feel our agency is really limited and there’s nothing we can do about it,” Barrett said.

Food prices are rising for lots of reasons, including climate change, a weaker dollar, and tariffs.

Barrett said the increases hit low-income people hardest because food takes up a bigger chunk of their household budgets.

“Food prices really don’t affect the behaviors of the well off,” he said. “Food prices affect the behavior of people who are struggling to make ends meet, and we see a lot of tradeoffs for cheap calories.”

Barrett said most people pay attention to where they get their nutrients and how much they cost.

In Baltimore, Smith said he’s trying to eat smaller portions, and his mindset toward eating has changed.

He said he used to eat for fun. Now, he said he feels like he eats to survive.