LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — You may have a lighter wallet this Thanksgiving with higher prices on groceries and ingredients for your holiday meal. But there are ways to ease the pain at the checkout counter.
Shoppers are grabbing last-minute items for their thanksgiving meals at Sprouts Farmers Market in Las Vegas.
“For the most part, people are still coming in happy. We’re trying to get something in their cart. No matter what, they’ll walk away happy,” Donald Pickering, the meat manager at the store, said.
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There’s still plenty of turkeys left, and this comes despite inventory challenges in the meat department due to supply chain issues.
“The variety of meats from beef to chicken to pork, it’s all had issues. Whole chickens are a popular item this time of the year. Some people like to substitute that for a turkey,” he said.
The issues are also playing a part in people spending more with shoppers at grocery stores like Smiths and Albertsons feeling the pinch.
“At least $50 to $75 dollars more,” Joe Giattino, who lives in Las Vegas, said.
“Probably at least a $100 to $150 more,” Elizar van Steenberghe, who’s visiting from Miami, said.
The American Farm Bureau Federation says an average Thanksgiving meal for 10 people now stands at $53.31. That’s up 14 percent from last year. An average turkey at about $1.50 a pound which is up 24% The bureau says this rise has a number of factors including the pandemic shifting more people to eat at home.
“Based on whether a food is destined for a retail shelf or destined for food service, so that’s taken some time to shift over and adding to the increase in cost,” Veronica Nigh, senior economist with the American Farm Bureau Federation, said.
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The Farm Bureau suggests some store hopping can help keep costs within budgets.
“If you have multiple retailers to choose from, maybe go online and check their ads to see what prices they’re offering for different items,” Nigh said.
That’s exactly what this shopper at Smiths did saving about a hundred dollars…
“Hop store to store. Don’t just stick to one store,” Teneakia Gale, who lives in Las Vegas, said.
The workers at Sprouts recommend pre-ordering your turkeys or meats and an entire meal so you are guaranteed to have it for the next big holiday coming up: Christmas.
