Grapefruit, lettuce, and other groceries that rose in price in September

Published 8:00 pm Monday, October 16, 2023

Grapefruit, lettuce, and other groceries that rose in price in September

After more than a year of historical inflation, grocery prices are staying relatively steady. Prices fell in March and April for the first time since September 2020 and have seen more moderate monthly inflation since then. In September, the cost of groceries rose 0.1% over August prices.

The drop earlier this spring was largely fueled by decreases in eggs—which had risen dramatically in price—as well as meats, fruits and vegetables, and dairy products.

The overall cost of groceries in September remained up 2.4% from 2022, which is more consistent with the annual inflation rate that the Fed has been trying for with its persistent interest rate hikes.

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Overall inflation has finally cooled following a period of historically high inflation in the past couple of years. A series of major social and economic events caused the spike, including the COVID-19 pandemic, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, labor disruptions, and heightened consumer demand.

Despite the lull, groceries in some categories continued to climb. Stacker used monthly data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics to find the grocery items that experienced the largest price increases over the last month, using year-over-year changes as a tiebreaker where needed. Stacker excluded some hyper-specific meat categories in order to better understand grocery price fluctuations more broadly.

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A grocery store shelf filled with various brands of bread.

Sheila Fitzgerald // Shutterstock

#20. Whole wheat bread (per lb.)

– One-month increase in cost: +0.1%
– Annual change in cost: +7.4%
– September 2023 cost: $2.54

A loaf of sliced white bread on a cutting board.

Canva

#19. White bread (per lb.)

– One-month increase in cost: +0.1%
– Annual change in cost: +12.8%
– September 2023 cost: $1.97

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An array of steak meat in a display case at a supermarket.

Canva

#18. Beef steaks (per lb.)

– One-month increase in cost: +0.2%
– Annual change in cost: +12.3%
– September 2023 cost: $10.77

A grocery shelf filled with various ground beef packages.

Sheila Fitzgerald // Shutterstock

#17. Ground beef (per lb.)

– One-month increase in cost: +0.3%
– Annual change in cost: +4.5%
– September 2023 cost: $5.57

A person pushing a grocery cart down the wine aisle.

06photo // Shutterstock

#16. Wine (per 1 liter)

– One-month increase in cost: +0.4%
– Annual change in cost: +1.2%
– September 2023 cost: $13.68

Dried macaroni noodles.

Canva

#15. Spaghetti and macaroni (per lb.)

– One-month increase in cost: +0.4%
– Annual change in cost: +3.9%
– September 2023 cost: $1.41

A can of frozen orange juice concentrate.

Keith Homan // Shutterstock

#14. Frozen concentrate orange juice (per 16 oz.)

– One-month increase in cost: +0.4%
– Annual change in cost: +23.4%
– September 2023 cost: $3.43

A variety of beers in a refrigerator in a supermarket.

Canva

#13. Malt beverages (per 16 oz.)

– One-month increase in cost: +0.5%
– Annual change in cost: +5.3%
– September 2023 cost: $1.74

Strawberries arranged in pint baskets ready for sale.

Dusan Petkovic // Shutterstock

#12. Strawberries (per 12 oz.)

– One-month increase in cost: +0.7%
– Annual change in cost: -5.5%
– September 2023 cost: $2.63

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The cheese section of the grocery store.

The Toidi // Shutterstock

#11. American processed cheese (per lb.)

– One-month increase in cost: +0.8%
– Annual change in cost: +1.9%
– September 2023 cost: $4.77

Various dried beans in burlap sacks.

Peangdao // Shutterstock

#10. Dried beans (per lb.)

– One-month increase in cost: +0.8%
– Annual change in cost: +2.3%
– September 2023 cost: $1.72

Baskets of naval oranges.

Canva

#9. Navel oranges (per lb.)

– One-month increase in cost: +0.9%
– Annual change in cost: -5.4%
– September 2023 cost: $1.64

The ice cream aisle at the grocery store.

MM Stock // Shutterstock

#8. Ice cream, prepackaged in bulk (per 1/2 gal.)

– One-month increase in cost: +0.9%
– Annual change in cost: +4.5%
– September 2023 cost: $5.96

A grocery shelf filled with gallons of whole milk.

The Toidi // Shutterstock

#7. Whole milk (per gal.)

– One-month increase in cost: +1%
– Annual change in cost: -5.2%
– September 2023 cost: $3.97

Closeup of white eggs in a carton.

Canva

#6. Eggs (per doz.)

– One-month increase in cost: +1.1%
– Annual change in cost: -28.8%
– September 2023 cost: $2.07

A plastic clear container of chocolate chip cookies.

pkajak201 // Shutterstock

#5. Chocolate chip cookies (per lb.)

– One-month increase in cost: +1.1%
– Annual change in cost: +6.6%
– September 2023 cost: $5.11

A full aisle of various chips at the grocery store.

Angie Yeoh // Shutterstock

#4. Potato chips (per 16 oz.)

– One-month increase in cost: +1.5%
– Annual change in cost: +8.3%
– September 2023 cost: $6.56

Baskets of iceberg lettuce wrapped in plastic at the grocery store.

Canva

#3. Iceberg lettuce (per lb.)

– One-month increase in cost: +4%
– Annual change in cost: Not available
– September 2023 cost: $1.66

Romaine lettuce leaves.

Canva

#2. Romaine lettuce (per lb.)

– One-month increase in cost: +5%
– Annual change in cost: -10.8%
– September 2023 cost: $2.68

Orange and pink grapefruit.

Kvitka Fabian // Shutterstock

#1. Grapefruit (per lb.)

– One-month increase in cost: +6.8%
– Annual change in cost: Not available
– September 2023 cost: $1.68

Data reporting by Paxtyn Merten.