Millions of Americans have radically transformed their shopping habits in response to the largest accumulation of food price increases in half a century: buying food for home consumption costs 33% more than at the beginning of 2019, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The product that best illustrates this crisis is beef. The price of a pound of ground beef reached $6.82 in June, which represents an increase of 79% compared to early 2019, according to figures from the same federal agency.
Ada Torres, 60 years old, a resident of Cleveland, Texas, is one of the millions of people who can no longer afford that product. She cooks for her daughter and three grandchildren, and fresh meat has stopped appearing on the table.
"The prices are through the roof. These days, a hundred dollars won't get you anything," said Torres, in an interview with Telemundo. The family can only afford one complete meal a day.
Chicken and processed meats replaced beef in that household. The grandchildren, aged 12, 15, and 16, miss the lasagna with ground beef and the beef fajitas that used to be a regular part of their diet.
In Lexington, Massachusetts, 50-year-old Apral Jack, a caregiver and part-time employee, completely reorganized her shopping routine. She checks discount apps before heading out, reviews weekly flyers for coupons, and compares prices among different stores. "The price of the apples I usually buy has gone up here, so I won't be purchasing them anymore," she explained while pushing her cart in a Stop & Shop supermarket. Brand name cookies that she used to buy have disappeared from her list.
In San Francisco, independent barber Jack Chang is under even greater pressure. With five mouths to feed—sometimes including his 77-year-old mother—he is falling behind on his credit card payments. "I look at the statement every month and think: how am I going to pay this?" he admitted. His family relies on the federal SNAP food assistance program to make ends meet. "Without that, I don't know what I would do," he acknowledged.
Chang's mother goes to two food banks each week and shares the eggs, canned goods, and fresh produce she acquires there with the rest of the family.
The situation worsens due to the cuts to the SNAP program resulting from the "One Big Beautiful Bill," signed by President Trump on July 4, 2025, which reduced the program by approximately $186 billion until 2034. As of February 1, 2026, new work requirements came into effect for adults aged 18 to 65, and more than 3.5 million people lost their benefits by the spring of this year.
Internal pressures are compounded by external factors. The conflict in the Middle East has driven up the costs of energy, fertilizers, and maritime transport, having a direct impact on global food prices. The FAO index reached its highest level in March 2026 since September of the previous year. Hawaii, which receives almost all of its food by ship, is one of the states most vulnerable to these fluctuations.
Annual food inflation reached 4.2% in May 2026, with fruits and vegetables rising by 6.1% year-over-year. Beef recorded an increase of 14.7% according to data from December 2025.
With the midterm elections on the horizon this fall, food affordability has become one of the most sensitive political issues for American voters.
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