Hot Dog, A Cookout is Expensive!

Last summer, as inflation just started to take off, the White House wanted Americans to celebrate a 16-cent “savings” on a Fourth of July cookout.

A year later, grocery bills are rising at the fastest pace in more than 40 years, and the Farm Bureau found that same meal will cost a staggering $10.18 more. That’s a 17% increase, and 27% more than before the pandemic.

With prices for ground beef up 36% from last summer, chicken breasts up 33%, pork and beans up 33%, pork chops up 31%, lemonade up 22%, and potato salad up 19%, some families might be forced to skip a cookout altogether.

In May, the food index portion of the consumer price index increased 10.1% compared to a year ago – the biggest increase since 1981. Food-at-home inflation reached almost 12% – the largest increase since 1979 – with five of the six major categories for grocery store food rising by more than 10%. During the 17 months of the Biden administration, inflation for food at home is 13.4% – the highest since President Carter was in office.

But Democrats continue to touch the hot grill, pushing for even more spending after their $2 trillion in stimulus spending last year ignited inflation. That’s something we definitely don’t relish.