Thanksgiving turkey prices will hit an all-time high this year, New York grocery chain CEO warns

As many Americans start making their Thanksgiving dinner shopping lists, the CEO of a New York grocery chain has warned that the main course could rock your budget gravy boat.

“This Thanksgiving, no change, highest prices ever for turkeys, highest prices ever for your Thanksgiving dinner,” said John Catsimatidis, CEO of Gristedes Foods and United Refining Company, on “Varney & Co”. Tuesday.

The CEO’s comments come as economists signal that it may be more affordable for Americans to eat out on Thanksgiving this year, rather than cooking at home.

According to a recent report by Wells Fargo, “Is this the year to dine out for Thanksgiving?”, the cost of staple foods, from poultry to fruit, will exceed the total of food at home and food out of home on the consumer price index (CPI) .

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According to Wells Fargo analysts and report authorsCourtney Schmidt and Brad Rubin.

They also warned that turkey supplies will be “more constrained” due to the continued impacts of highly pathogenic avian flu.

“Turkey prices jumped after bird flu wiped out livestock earlier this year. Although stocks have rebounded, the cost per pound will be higher,” the authors noted.

Meanwhile, the price of eggs, which have also been affected by bird fluhave already risen 32.5% while butter and flour rose 25.8% and 17.1% respectively, according to analysts, who used August CPI data to show the increase costs since November 2021.

So far, fruits and vegetables have seen the lowest cost increase, with prices up 7.3%.

Nearly a year ago, Catsimatidis predicted that rising food prices and decades-high inflation were “here to stay”, and said manufacturers were “freaking out” as the costs of food, energy and transportation increased.

The Labor Department reported last week that the CPI, a broad measure of the price of everyday goods, including gas, groceries and rents, rose 0.4% in October from to the previous month. Prices climbed 7.7% on an annual basis.

Catsimatidis’ comments contradict The Federal Reservewhich has largely remained convinced that inflation is “transitional” and coming down from its peak, as the bank embarks on one of the most aggressive tightening paths in decades.

“Jay Powell did his job,” Catsimatidis told host Stuart Varney on Tuesday. “He did a great job destroying the real estate industry instead of Washington solving the problem.”

In the meantime, Americans may find some price relief if they seek alternatives or shop at chains that take a public stance against inflation and match their previous years’ prices for Thanksgiving staples, such as Aldi’s, Walmart and BJ’s Wholesale Club.

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“Saving money is a top priority for our customers right now, so this year we’re eliminating inflation on an entire basket of traditional Thanksgiving items,” said John Laney, executive vice president of the food at Walmart US in a blog post.

“Delivering incredible products at the absolute lowest prices is what we have always done, and we know right now that it’s more important than ever,” Dave Rinaldo, president of Aldi US, also said in a statement. .

In addition to higher prices on grocery shelves, Catsimatidis, which also owns D’Agonisto supermarkets in New York, also said the number of thefts from stores had been “higher than usual” this year. .

“We hired more security, more retired NYPD to prevent it, compared to national chains – they’re not street fighters,” Catsimatidis said. “They don’t know how to deal with [crime] problem in New York.”

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Daniella Genovese, Megan Henney and Catie Perry of FOX Business contributed to this report.