Higher food prices mean it will cost Granny a little more to make the Thanksgiving feast this year, but markedly lower gas prices will make it cheaper to get to her house.
The Duluth area had the lowest gas prices in Minnesota on Monday, at about $2.49 per gallon of unleaded regular, according to minnesotagasprices.com. That compared with $2.68 for the statewide average and $2.80 across the U.S.
Gas is nearly 40 cents per gallon cheaper than last year at this time. This is the cheapest gas has been at Thanksgiving since 2009 and will help save holiday drivers some cash as they fill up for the holiday weekend.
For example, a 350-mile round trip to the Twin Cities this year will cost about $6 less than in 2013 if your vehicle gets 25 mpg.
“While many of us are convinced that gas prices automatically go up in advance of every travel holiday, our price tracking has proven that to be a widely held misconception,” said Patrick DeHaan, senior petroleum analyst with GasBuddy, the company that operates minnesotgas
prices.com. “In some years we’ve seen occasions, particularly during the Thanksgiving and Christmas travel periods, when prices remained flat or even posted a decline.”
DeHaan said the U.S. Department of Energy is reporting burgeoning inventory of gasoline on hand as the U.S. produces more and more oil at the same time that drivers here are recording fewer miles in more-efficient vehicles. DeHaan said he expects gas prices to continue to drop this week.
The declining cost of crude oil also has helped push gas prices down, experts noted, with oil now at about $80 per barrel and some analysts saying it could hit $60 per barrel if major oil producers in the Mideast don’t cut production soon. Oil was as high as $140 per barrel in 2009.
Lots of travelers
AAA Travel projects 46.3 million Americans will travel 50 miles or more from home during the long Thanksgiving weekend, from Wednesday through Sunday - the highest volume for the holiday since 2007 and a 4.2 percent increase over 2013.
Almost 90 percent will drive. About 3.6 million people will fly, the highest number since 2007.
Marshall L. Doney, AAA president and chief operating officer, said lower fuel prices are helping to raise consumer confidence. That increases consumer travel and spending, he said.
“This year, more Americans will give thanks for the opportunity to travel to friends and family than any year since 2007,” Doney said in a statement. “Americans are more optimistic about the future as improvements in several key economic factors - including employment, GDP and disposable income - are boosting consumer confidence and the desire to travel.”
Higher food prices
The Wisconsin Farm Bureau Federation conducted its annual survey of the cost of a Thanksgiving feast with all the fixings for 10 people, and the average price came in at $50.86 in the Badger State. That’s up nearly $2.50, or 5 percent, from 2013.
The federation notes the price of the meal averages out to about $5 per person and is comparable to what people spend for a fast-food meal.
The national average price for the big meal sits at $49.41.
The survey looked at 12 key ingredients - from the turkey to cranberries, milk and sweet potatoes - purchased in 23 different cities across Wisconsin. Only stuffing and rolls were cheaper than last year; everything else had gone up in price.
Of the total cost of the meal, the federation determined that the producers - farmers - receive only about $8.13, or less than 17 percent. That reflects a 30-year trend in which farmers have seen less of every dollar spent on food.
In the 1970s, the federation noted, farmers received about one-third of consumer retail food expenditures in grocery stores and restaurants. Since then that figure has decreased steadily, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
