Thanksgiving dinner will cost a little more this year

WATERTOWN, New York (WWNY) - Thanksgiving dinner will be a little more expensive this year.

It’s a given that you’ll see turkey, stuffing, and cans of cranberry sauce on the thanksgiving table. Their prices, however, are anything but constant.

“Fuel, labor. Those prices can reflect what consumers pay at the grocery store,” said Steve Ammerman, Director of Communications for the New York Farm Bureau.

On average, prices are up, with the biggest increase coming from turkey. The Farm Bureau says a 16 pound bird will set you back a couple more dollars this year. Other staples like stuffing and milk have only increased by a few cents. Some items like whipped cream and cranberries are actually cheaper this year.

“One reason for that is an increased supply in cranberry production here in the United States. Plus, we saw increased imports coming in from Canada,” Ammerman said.

The good news? Although prices are up a little, the increase is less than the recent past, a sign inflation is cooling.

“Last year it (the Farm Bureau’s example meal) was just over $66. This year we’re just over $70. While that can still be a concern for some families, when it comes to paying for the food to put on a Thanksgiving table, it is definitely slowing down in terms of an inflation rate,” Ammerman said.

That didn’t satisfy all the shoppers we spoke with.

“Oh, they’ve gone up less. Well going up is going up, For people that are on a budget it’s really tough,” said Janine Smith.

Others say they’ve been able to mostly offset the increased costs through the use of coupons and sales.

“I’ve just been watching that and grabbing some things as they’ve gone along. This last minute run was some very small items,” said Joanne Kirkby.

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