Posted on 11/22/2008 5:15:10 PM PST by Diana in Wisconsin
Stuffing yourself with stuffing and turkey and mashed potatoes and all the fixings will cost more this Thanksgiving than last year, according to the annual market basket survey from the Wisconsin Farm Bureau Federation.
A traditional holiday meal for a family of eight will cost $42.37 this year, $2.72 more than the $39.66 spent on the 14 items in the basket in 2007.
Practically every item went up in price this year, except for some of the vegetables including sweet potatoes, carrots and peas.
Even with the higher prices, Farm Bureau spokesman Paul Ketring said a homemade Thanksgiving dinner is still pretty much a bargain.
"For around $5.30 per person, families can enjoy a bountiful holiday meal," Ketring said. "We are very fortunate to have this abundance and affordability coming from our farms."
The big ticket item in the Thanksgiving market basket is the turkey, and the average "unadvertised" price for a 16-pound bird was up 13 cents.
"We remind consumers many will be able to take advantage of special in-store promotions or coupons resulting in much lower prices for turkeys than reported in this survey," Ketring said.
Potatoes had the biggest price jump from last year, up 32 percent from $2.19 a 5-pound bag in 2007 to $2.90 this year.
The Farm Bureau said fewer acres of potatoes were planted this year and poor weather early in the year contributed to a smaller crop and the resulting higher prices.
Dairy prices and global demand shot up in 2007 but subsided in 2008, so the cost of a gallon of milk in this market basket survey was up only four cents to $3.39 a gallon from the 2007 survey. Last year, the price of milk was 66 cents higher than the year before.
Sweet potatoes were down 15 cents for a 3-pound bag, dropping to $1.11 a bag from $1.26 in 2007.
The market basket also includes a 14-ounce package of stuffing, a 30-ounce can of pumpkin pie mix, a package of two, 9-inch frozen pie shells, a 12-ounce package of brown-and-serve rolls, a 1-pound package of frozen peas, half-pounds of carrots, celery and onions, a 12-ounce package of fresh cranberries and a half-pint of whipping cream.
When the Farm Bureau started doing the Thanksgiving market basket survey 17 years ago, the 14 items in the basket cost $26.50, so the cost of the traditional dinner has gone up 60 percent in 17 years.
Your stuffing is better than Stovetop.
I make mine from scratch most every year but this year. I do mine pretty much the way you explained it.
Has the price for a Thanksgiving Dinner ever gone DOWN as compared to the year before?
I think it depends on the item but no, I have not seen prices really come down. Baking items are quite high though.
Fry it inject all the flavors u want in it and it will be done in an hour more or less. Google is your friend put in fried turkey and see what you get. Fryers are reasonable and have many other uses think chicken and fish and ask your kids what they like.
$.49/lb for a Butterball in LA - Cheap Meat if you ask me.
Free Range Turkey at Henry’s $.99/lb. Have to buy $30 of stuff. (So Cal)
Here's my Thanksgiving dinner under Obama.
Mainers are being encouraged to serve lobster at Thanksgiving as the price of lobster has plummetted of late and the fisherman are hurting.
I know everything is relative, but I wonder what the cost of a meal compares — in ratio to earnings, and how different it is from years past. Just wondering. Is it like the cost of a quart of milk is higher than it was 20 years ago -— but so are earnings.
Off topic — The parenthesed comment, after my name, is gone. How does one add one? I’ve looked all over FR, but can’t find how to do it and I don’t remember how I did it in the first place!
The title cracks me up! I got the free turkey at Ingles because I “spent” a certain amount(all subsidized with coupons so that was a 30-40% savings right off the bat). And that Thanksgiving meal stretches into another 5 meals after adding about a dollar worth of sides for each meal. The truth is, Thanksgiving dinner is the meal that keeps on giving.
Amen fellow butter lover!!! And can I have an Alleluia on real sour creme in the homemade, using real spuds, mashed taters!
When you post your comment, there is a box under the comment box for ‘tagline.’. Type what you want your taggy to say, and when you post your ‘comment’ it (the tagline) will magically appear.
Don’t forget the garlic in those masmashed taters!
Damn I miss Wegmans. Down where I am, Walmart is my best option.
A Stiller fan in AZ!!! Cool!!! A former yunzer or just like the Black and Gold?
Now you are giving away all my secrets :)
I use Craisins sauteed w/butter and finely chopped onion on my green beans.
Happy almost Turkey Day FRiend!!!
ROFL!!!
I missed this yesterday as I spent the majority of the day in the kitchen. I have a huge stockpot of ham broth on the stove which will go toward many a hearty pot of soup, including the black ban soup we are having for dinner. I also made 5 different kinds of cookies, and dough for 2 others is “mellowing” in the fridge for rolling this afternoon.
I’m lugging my portable sewing machine to church this morning because after service another mom and I are going to start working on the “costumes” for the Sunday school (adults and kids) float that is going to be in one of the local town Chritmas Parades. Yes we do have Christmas Parades, not “holiday” parades around here :)
Going with a goose this year at $5 a pound.
Will likely return to turkeys.
Shoprite gives turkeys out for free if you spend a certain amount of money......got ours a few weeks ago....what a treat!!!!!!!
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