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Consumer prices for turkeys and other Thanksgiving favorites
November 22, 2023
Happy Thanksgiving! Here at the Bureau of Labor Statistics we give thanks for our data users, readers, and subscribers to our email updates. And, of course, we give thanks for all the survey participants who make our data possible. We are thankful to be trusted providers of information about labor market activity, working conditions, price changes, productivity, and more. Now let’s pull up a chair and dig into the Consumer Price Index (CPI) to talk about prices for a table full of turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy, a roll or two, and pie.
Prices consumers paid for other uncooked poultry including turkey were 7.2 percent higher in October 2023 than in October 2022. Prices increased 16.9 percent in the same period one year ago. From 2000 to 2023, prices rose at a 3.0-percent annual rate from one October to the next.
12-month percent change in consumer prices for some Thanksgiving favorites, October 2000 to October 2023
Year
Other uncooked poultry including turkey
Potatoes
Sauces and gravies
Fresh biscuits, rolls, muffins
Frozen and refrigerated bakery products, pies, tarts, turnovers
2000
4.4
-1.7
1.0
1.6
1.0
2001
3.6
13.0
4.8
3.3
6.3
2002
-2.7
7.3
-0.6
3.0
1.6
2003
3.5
-3.6
1.1
3.4
1.5
2004
3.6
3.7
-5.0
3.2
0.7
2005
0.0
14.6
3.0
2.7
2.6
2006
1.7
4.7
2.3
4.7
2.8
2007
3.4
0.2
0.3
4.0
1.6
2008
3.9
31.1
9.7
14.0
11.5
2009
1.9
-17.1
4.5
-1.6
1.5
2010
4.3
1.2
-1.3
1.5
-0.7
2011
7.3
11.9
4.4
7.3
4.9
2012
5.5
-10.9
1.1
-0.1
0.6
2013
1.7
10.2
-1.2
3.3
1.0
2014
-0.2
-2.1
2.7
0.1
-0.8
2015
1.9
0.9
1.7
2.6
0.6
2016
-1.4
0.5
-1.2
-1.6
0.1
2017
-3.1
3.3
1.4
0.4
-1.0
2018
-4.9
0.9
1.5
1.7
0.7
2019
3.5
8.9
0.4
0.7
-0.3
2020
11.3
0.3
4.9
3.2
2.6
2021
1.7
1.7
1.8
4.8
4.1
2022
16.9
15.2
14.6
13.6
18.6
2023
7.2
-3.3
7.5
5.7
2.7
Note: Data are not seasonally adjusted.
Along with turkey, Thanksgiving is well known for mashed potatoes and gravy. Prices paid for potatoes decreased 3.3 percent over the year ended October 2023, following an increase of 15.2 percent in the prior year. Potato prices increased at a 3.6-percent annual rate from October 2000 to October 2023. Topping things off, prices for sauces and gravies were 7.5 percent higher than in October 2022, after rising 14.6 percent during the same period one year prior. Prices for sauces and gravies had a 2.5-percent annual rate of increase for the year ended in October from 2000 to 2023.
Let’s add a roll or two to help clean up our Thanksgiving plate. Prices for fresh biscuits, rolls, and muffins were up 5.7 percent over the year, after increasing 13.6 percent from October 2021 to October 2022. Prices for fresh biscuits, rolls, and muffins increased at a 3.4-percent annual rate from October 2000 to October 2023.
Before leaving the table, how about a selection from the category of frozen and refrigerated bakery products, pies, tarts, and turnovers. Prices for this category increased 2.7 percent for the year ended October 2023 compared with the 12-month increase of 18.6 percent in October 2022. Perhaps two selections from the dessert table are in order this year! From 2000 to 2023, prices for frozen and refrigerated bakery products, pies, tarts, and turnovers increased 2.7 percent from one October to the next.
United States Department of Labor
