Can’t bring home the bacon: Your grocery bill is going up because of these two staples

Grocery prices jumped by .3% from June to July, but it is the costs of eggs and bacon that caused the most damage to consumers’ wallets, according to a new report.

Data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics reveal that for July, grocery prices jumped by 1.1% compared to a year ago. 

Meanwhile, egg prices, which have been on the rise for months, jumped 5.7% from June to July. Compared to July 2023, egg prices have risen by 19.1%.  

To put that into perspective, the average price for a dozen large Grade A eggs went from $2.72 in June to $3.08 in July.

This is the largest 12-month change in egg prices since April 2023. At that time, the cost of eggs jumped 21.4% year over year. 

These drastic egg price increases in July come as inflation fell to below 3% for the first time in nearly 3 1/2 years.  

Rises in egg prices have been attributed to shocks to the supply caused by the avian flu outbreaks, but this hasn’t affected the supply of eggs from free-range chickens. 

Other factors at play include transportation and labor costs, but in July, the price of workers declined by .2% on a yearly basis. This is the largest decline in labor costs, which continued to grow in June, since March 2023. 

Bacon saw the largest yearly increase in two years. Compared to last July, the cost of bacon is up by 8.5%.

Frozen noncarbonated juices and drinks are also up 19.2% from last July. 

However, some food items did see a drop in prices. Fresh fish and seafood are down by 2.4% compared to the previous month and down by 2.1% on a yearly basis.

The recent consumer price index report comes as Vice President Kamala Harris pushes for a federal ban on price gouging on groceries in an effort to win over voters.