Pa. eyes ways to cut grocery costs
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Pennsylvania is trying to figure out the best way to lower grocery prices.
Why it matters: As grocery costs continue to soar, Americans are putting less in their carts, disrupting the grocery industry and increasing food insecurity.
By the numbers: Grocery prices are about 30% higher than they were in 2019, though food inflation has cooled over the past two years, according to U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data.
- About two-thirds of Americans describe the cost of groceries as unaffordable, according to a July Washington Post/Ipsos poll.
Driving the news: Pennsylvania Democratic state senators held a policy hearing in Pittsburgh on Friday to determine how the state government can affect grocery prices.
What they're saying: Some things are out of the state government's hands, considering federal policies like tariffs and broad economic uncertainty, UFCW 1776 labor union president Wendell Young said at the hearing.
- UFCW represents about 35,000 workers across Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Ohio and New York, mostly in the grocery, retail and food packaging sectors.
Yes, but: There are other ways Pennsylvania lawmakers can lower the state's grocery prices.
Case in point: The state can lower fertilizer costs by increasing fertilizer production in Pennsylvania, said state agriculture secretary Russell Redding.
- The U.S. imports about 30% of its fertilizer supply, and he said the state can provide more funding to help more producers.
- State Sen. Nick Pisciottano (D-West Mifflin) said antitrust legislation and bills to stop companies from changing prices in real time, aka dynamic pricing, would help keep costs down.
State Republicans unveiled an affordability plan in March that would temporarily suspend several state taxes for six months to lower prices on gas, newborn goods, and electricity and phone bills.
The bottom line: Most state solutions proposed by Democrats and Republicans wouldn't have an immediate effect on grocery prices.
- State Sen. Minority Leader Jay Costa (D-Forest Hills) said the state can provide more tax credits, like for childcare, in the interim to ensure "folks have easier access to the things that they need."