Inflation: Grocery costs jumped 13.1% in July

Yahoo Finance’s Brooke DiPalma discusses grocery inflation.

Video transcript

JULIE HYMAN: All right, so let's talk about the food component, in particular, because that saw an increase, as you pointed out. Still, not like all of the fuel components that are falling. Brooke, you're digging into the food side?

BROOKE DIPALMA: Yeah, absolutely. Consumers can still expect to see some sticker shock when they get to the grocery store. Food, year over year is up a whopping 13.1%. That's higher than May. April, June, those numbers relative, 9% to 10% up there. From June to July, that cost of food at home increased by 1.4%.

Now, one of the highest categories we saw was cereal and bakery products. That's 15% year over year. Meat and poultry up 10.9% now. The highest increase there was offset by eggs, are up a whopping 38% year over year. That's up from June, 4.3%.

Now, I did speak to an economist before we jumped on. And he said that eggs have been a relatively volatile index prior to the pandemic. And get this, he said that he heard that weather can have a huge, huge effect on how many eggs that these chickens can produce.

Now, if you take a look at some categories that also jumped, he emphasized coffee as well as nonalcoholic beverages. Year over year, coffee saw a 20% jump. Nonalcoholic beverages, of course, that includes carbonated drinks jumped a whopping 13.8%. Of course, oranges still in focus. They're up 14% year over year. So consumers still getting hit at the grocery store.

JULIE HYMAN: Wait, I just had an idea to solve your egg--

BRIAN CHEUNG: Oh, no.

JULIE HYMAN: --problem, Brian Sozzi.

BROOKE DIPALMA: Oh, no.

BRAD SMITH: Knew it was coming.

JULIE HYMAN: Laying hens? Is it time to buy some laying hens?

BRIAN SOZZI: I'm not laying hens. I have no, backyard to lay hens in.

JULIE HYMAN: Do you have a balcony?

BRIAN SOZZI: No, no balcony to lay hens.

BRIAN CHEUNG: You can have it in a fish tank with the heat lamp in there.

BRIAN SOZZI: Right.