The cost of Thanksgiving dinner has dropped this year for a second year in a row.
The American Farm Bureau Federation estimates that the cost of an “exotic” Thanksgiving dinner for 10 people will be $58.08 by 2024. This is a drop of 9% from the record-breaking price of $64.05 in 2022.
The price of this package includes turkey, peas and cranberries as well as sweet potatoes.
Food inflation has slowed down across the country, and this is reflected in the broader drop in grocery prices.
Food prices soared during the pandemic faster than any other time since 1979. They peaked in 2022.
Inflationary pressures started to decrease in 2023 and this trend continued through 2024.
This decline is attributed by the USDA to lower wholesale food costs and stabilized energy prices, both of which helped to bring relief to consumers.
A Deloitte study found that nearly half of Americans who are hosting Thanksgiving in the United States this year still worry about the costs of the celebration.
If you add additional items like ham, potatoes russets, or green beans, your bill will rise to $77.34, which is still 8% less than last year.
The decline in costs is welcome, but they remain high compared with pre-pandemic prices.
Bernt Nelson is an economist at the Farm Bureau. He noted that average meals are still 19% more expensive than they were in 2019.
Turkey prices: A curious decline amid lower supply
Turkey, the centerpiece of Thanksgiving dinners, offers the biggest price reduction.
The average national cost for a 16 pound turkey fell by 6 percent to $25.67.
According to the Consumer Price Index, overall, turkey prices have decreased by about 4% over the past year.
In a CNBC article, Bernt Nelson said, “This turkey season has been an interesting one.”
US Department of Agriculture reported that in 2024 205 millions turkeys will be raised. This is a decline of 6 percent, due to the impact of Avian Influenza, which decimated flocks of poultry since 2022.
Normaly, a reduction in supply would lead to higher prices, but the waning demand from consumers offsets this potential increase.
The price of turkey has declined by around a pound per person this year.
Nelson pointed out that “turkey prices had the largest impact on overall costs of Thanksgiving this year”, given the fact that 44% of all grocery bills are typically accounted for by the turkey.
The trend for processed foods is bucking.
While milk and turkey prices have fallen, other processed foods such as dinner rolls and cubed fillings are now more expensive.
Prices for these items increased by more than 8% between 2024 and 2025, mainly due to rising costs of labor as well as other inflationary pressures not related to food.
The Farm Bureau says that these increased numbers are a result of the pandemic-era disturbances.
Food prices soared during the pandemic due to challenges in supply chains, shortages of labor, and other external factors, such as Russia’s invasion into Ukraine that drove up energy cost.
Nelson said that higher energy costs have an impact on the entire supply chain.
While inflationary pressures are lessened since 2022 for food producers, the cost of labor remains a problem.
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