Here's How Expensive Chicken Has Gotten With Inflation
With the initial shock of the COVID-19 pandemic slowing in 2022, people in the United States are attempting to return to the lives they once knew. And part of that includes having reliable food products in their pantries and refrigerators without too much additional worry.
That being said, with food prices continuing to rise, your beloved cup of coffee isn't even safe from the world's increasing inflation rate, which is the highest it's been in the United States in nearly 40 years (per Time). Having a plate of trusty eggs in the morning should be something we all look forward to now that they're back on grocery store shelves — but once we take note of the uptake in egg prices, we may reconsider. Not only have egg prices risen due to the infectious Avian flu that has killed nearly 24 million domestic birds since February, but the cost continues to increase due to extreme feed prices affecting farmers all over the country (per Drovers).
Unfortunately, eggs aren't the only food affected by these cost factors. Chicken prices are also reaching an all-time high.
The rising cost of chicken
While the restaurant business underwent an abrupt halt amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, more people warmed to the idea of eating out again in 2021. But chicken is still having a hard time reaching the pre-pandemic supply it once had, according to Agrilife Today. When you consider the best chicken sandwiches across the United States are made primarily with white meat, you begin to realize there's only so much meat that one chicken can provide. That plus the rising cost of feed is also adding fuel to the proverbial fire of rising chicken prices.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), chicken did see an uptake of 6% in price when the COVD-19 pandemic was beginning to surge around May and June of 2020. However, the biggest increase difference has been noted in the last year. In June 2021, the average cost per pound of boneless chicken was $3.53; in June 2022, it was $4.56. That's a significant hike of 29% in one year. Not only that, but between February of this year to June, the price of chicken grew by 20%.
Apart from the Avian flu, when you consider the extreme drought the country has experienced, along with the price of corn nearly doubling since the 2010s, the glorified chicken was destined to become a high-priced commodity.