Lisa Altman used to take pride in being able to eat what she wanted without worrying much about the cost.
When she was growing up, seconds weren't served and side dishes were rare. “My mom had a budget every week, and she stuck to it,” she said. “As I got older and became more financially independent, having a full pantry and being able to eat what I wanted was a sign of success for me,” she added.
“It was very humbling to have to go from that situation to where we're at right now.”
Altman and her wife live in Austin, Texas with their three children. Recently, they've been relying mostly on one income. Their reduced earnings, coupled with inflation, have dealt a blow to their finances.
And that has changed, radically, the way they eat. Altman is not alone in making big changes.
We asked CNN readers how inflation has impacted their eating habits, and many mentioned dining out less often, buying less meat and giving up splurges. Some said they are very worried about the future.
Food prices have spiked 11.4% over the past year, the largest annual increase since May 1979, according to data released in mid-September by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Grocery prices jumped 13.5% and restaurant menu prices increased 8% in that period.
Consumers are responding by looking for deals and switching to generic brands, according to July data from the market research firm IRI. Companies like Tyson (TSN) have noticed customers are switching from beef to chicken, and Applebee's and IHOP have reported an uptick in higher-income customers who are likely trading down from pricier restaurants. Some people may be dining out less often, or avoiding restaurants altogether.
For those who struggled to buy food even before prices shot up, rising costs could mean falling into food insecurity, a state of unreliable access to affordable food.
“If food prices continue to increase at a rate that outpaces increases in wages, that is the inevitable consequence,” said Jayson Lusk, head of the agricultural economics department at Purdue University. “The last time we had a big run up in food insecurity rates was in the wake of the Great Recession.” Last year, about 10.2% of US households were food insecure, according to the USDA, slightly below the 10.5% rate in 2020 and 2019.
Even for those not at risk of hunger, the surges in food prices are jarring.
Food “matters a lot to our self esteem, our mood,” said William Masters, a professor at Tufts University' school of nutrition science and policy who is also a member of the economics department faculty. “Not being able to buy the foods that people are used to — that your children are asking for, that your family wants — that's a really hard thing,” he said. “Any disruption of habit is very, very hard.”
Giving up on simple pleasures
For Carol Ehrman, cooking is a joyful experience.
“I love to cook, it's my favorite thing to do,” she said. She especially likes to cook Indian and Thai food, but stocking the spices and ingredients she needs for those dishes is no longer feasible. “When every ingredient has gone up, that adds up on the total bill,” she said.
“What used to cost us $250 to $300 … is now $400.” Ehrman, 60, and her husband, 65, rely on his social security income, and the increase was stretching their budget. “We just couldn't do that.”
About six months ago, she realized she had to change the way she shops for groceries.
In an effort to bring their immediate costs down, Ehrman stopped shopping in bulk as often as she used to. Now, she hunts for sales, avoids buying beef, and opts for boxed wine instead of nice bottles when she buys wine at all. She's also cooking simpler meals, and saying goodbye to dinner parties.
Ehrman haș even given up preparing basic items, like tomato sauce, because of the expense, opting instead for a pre-packaged version.
“I know that I can make it much healthier,” she said. And “it always tastes so much better.” Those fresh ingredients are just too pricey now.
Ehrman's husband is retired due to chronic health problems, and it's been difficult for her to work because of her own health issues — she recently had pacemaker and heart catheterization procedures. The couple, who live in Billings, Montana, were frugal before the current spike in prices, enjoying simple pleasures. But now, even those are out of reach.
“Before, we at least found joy in being home and having friends over and family over, cooking and sitting around the table and just being content,” she said. Now, “I'm not entertaining at all. It's really sad.”
