JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – Missouri shoppers can expect to pay less than last year for the ingredients needed to prepare a traditional Thanksgiving Day meal for 10 people, with some leftovers. The average cost this year is $48.61, compared to $51.87 last year, for a savings of $3.26. That is a cost of only $4.86 per person!
The menu includes a 16-pound turkey, bread stuffing, sweet potatoes, rolls with butter, peas, cranberries, a relish tray, pumpkin pie with whipped cream and beverages of coffee and milk. Most items decreased in price this year with the exception of sweet potatoes, milk and whipping cream. The increases were slight and offset by the reduced price of other items.
According to Diane Olson, Missouri Farm Bureau Director of Promotion and Education Programs, turkey is the centerpiece of this meal and the average per pound price for the bird dropped by 18 cents. “This makes a significant impact on the overall cost,” Olson says.
The American Farm Bureau reports the supply of turkeys in cold storage is about 4 percent higher today compared to a year ago and on-farm production of turkeys remains strong. These factors impact turkey prices at the store.
The cost of the same meal reported by the American Farm Bureau was $49.04. This makes the meal in the Show Me State $0.43 less than the national average.
Thanksgiving provides a time for family gatherings and an opportunity to count blessings and share. Without agriculture and farmers, these food choices would not be available. Count the productivity of American’s farmers among those many blessings.
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