May 26, 2023 - News

Your Memorial Day barbecue has gotten cheaper

Change in cost of <span style="background:#e19310; padding:3px 5px;color:white;border-radius:5px;">meat and eggs</span> compared to <span style="background:#626262; padding:3px 5px;color:white;border-radius:5px;white-space:nowrap;">all food</span> in Seattle
Data: Bureau of Labor Statistics; Chart: Alice Feng/Axios

Seattle has had some of the nation's highest inflation in the past year, but in at least one area we're now catching a break: the cost of meat to throw on the grill.

Why it matters: If you're planning a big family barbecue for Memorial Day weekend, you'll feel less pain this year when you visit your local butcher's counter — at least, compared to 2022.

Driving the news: While nationwide the cost of meat, poultry, fish and eggs rose 2.8% between April 2022 and April 2023, in the Seattle metro area, those prices fell by 3.6%, according to Consumer Price Index data.

Yes, but: Overall food costs in the Seattle metro area still were up 8.0% year over year.

  • So you could still be shelling out more money for your sides and condiments.

Plus: One reason we're seeing meat prices decline now is likely because they spiked so much last spring.

  • In April 2022, the prices of meat, poultry and eggs in the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue metro area rose about 21.5% compared to a year earlier.

The bottom line: Your celebratory ribeye may cost less than last year — but that's not a lot of solace, given that it wasn't cheap then, either.

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