Food index rises in November

The food index, a measure of inflation, increased during November, rising 0.4% as the food-at-home index increased 0.5% and the food-away-from-home index rose 0.3%, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Wednesday.The food index is part of the Consumer Price Index, which measures inflation.The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) increased 0.3% on a seasonally adjusted basis in November, after rising 0.2% in each of the previous four months, the BLS said. Over the last 12 months, the all items index increased 2.7% before seasonal adjustment.

Andy Harig, a vice president of FMI-The Food Industry Association, said, “Today’s CPI numbers show that inflation is a stubborn thing, and the U.S. still has some work to do to fully tame it. Food-at-home remains well below the Fed’s overall 2% target, coming in at 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. But the slight tick upward to 0.5% in the monthly figure bears watching. Increases in the price of eggs (8.2%) – driven by avian influenza – and the price of beef (3.1%) – driven by high input costs – both point to challenges the food and agriculture supply chain are working to address. But November’s numbers continue to demonstrate that, for consumers looking for affordability, eating at home is still the best bet.”

The BLS said, “Four of the six major grocery store food group indexes increased in November. The index for meats, poultry, fish, and eggs rose 1.7% over the month, as the index for beef increased 3.1% and the index for eggs rose 8.2%. The nonalcoholic beverages index increased 1.5% in November, after rising 0.4% in October. The index for other food at home rose 0.1% over the month and the index for fruits and vegetables increased 0.2%.

The cereals and bakery products index fell 1.1% in November, the largest one-month decrease ever reported for the index which was first published in 1989. The index for dairy and related products declined 0.1% over the month.

The food-away-from-home index rose 0.3% in November, after rising 0.2% in October. The index for full-service meals also rose 0.3% over the month as did the index for limited-service meals.

The food-at-home index rose 1.6% over the last 12 months. The index for meats, poultry, fish, and eggs rose 3.8% over the last 12 months, and the index for nonalcoholic beverages increased 2.8%. Over the same period, the fruits and vegetables index rose 1.1% and the other food-at-home index increased 0.7%. The index for dairy and related products increased 1.2% over the year. In contrast, the cereals and bakery products index declined 0.5% over the last year, the largest 12-month decline since December 2017. The food-away-from-home index rose 3.6% over the last year. The index for limited-service meals increased 3.7% over the last 12 months, and the index for full-service meals rose 3.6% over the same period.

The index for shelter rose 0.3% in November, accounting for nearly 40% of the monthly all-items increase.