Food price inflation and the 2024 presidential election

Key Points

The 2024 presidential candidates from both major parties have prioritized food price inflation as a key campaign issue, though their explanations about the causes of higher food prices seem to overlook the lasting effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on food supply chains and global inflationary pressures. During the pandemic, food prices for consumption at home increased sharply but have since moderated, increasing at only about 1 percent annually since 2022 and more slowly than the general inflation rate. Prices for food away from home have followed a similar path but are now increasing at about 3 percent a year. The share of income spent on food increased modestly during the pandemic for all households, but by much less than some commenters suggest, even for low-income households, which only modestly increased the share of their income spent on food by 1.3 percentage points.