Inflation hit a 40-year high last year, and while inflation has slowed and even declined in recent months, consumers are still shelling out more than usual for their groceries.
Cheddar News correspondent Shannon LaNier visited a store in New Rochelle, New York, just north of New York City, to take a look at the price tags for common items, and found that one of the costlier sections of the grocery store these days is the dairy aisle.
"The price increases are coming every week, especially on eggs," said Jose Felipe, store manager of Rochelle Farms. He added that potato-based products are also seeing higher prices.
"French fries, for example, are in short supply and also very expensive," he said.
While the consumer price index declined 0.1 percent in December, food prices were up 0.3 percent month-over-month and 10.4 percent year-over-year. Eggs, meanwhile, saw some of the biggest gains in the whole index, rising nearly 60 percent year-over-year.
Producers have generally blamed the forced culling of millions of chickens in response to an avian flu outbreak. Others, however, say industry collusion is the biggest factor.
Farmer-led advocacy group Farm Action sent a letter urging the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) "to promptly open an investigation into the egg industry, prosecute any violations of the antitrust laws it finds within, and ultimately, get the American people their money back.”
The group said the price increases were the result of a "collusive scheme among industry leaders to turn inflationary conditions and an avian flu outbreak into an opportunity to extract egregious profits reaching as high as 40 percent."
Nestlé has dismissed its CEO Laurent Freixe after an investigation into an undisclosed relationship with a direct subordinate. The company announced on Monday that the dismissal was effective immediately. An investigation found that Freixe violated Nestlé’s code of conduct. He had been CEO for a year. Philipp Navratil, a longtime Nestlé executive, will replace him. Chairman Paul Bulcke stated that the decision was necessary to uphold the company’s values and governance. Navratil began his career with Nestlé in 2001 and has held various roles, including CEO of Nestlé's Nespresso division since 2024.
Kraft Heinz is splitting into two companies a decade after they joined in a massive merger that created one of the biggest food companies on the planet. One of the companies will include brands such as Heinz, Philadelphia cream cheese and Kraft Mac & Cheese. The other will include brands like Oscar Mayer, Kraft Singles and Lunchables. When the company formed in 2015 it wanted to capitalize on its massive scale, but shifting tastes complicated those plans, with households seeking to introduce healthier options at the table. Kraft Heinz's net revenue has fallen every year since 2020.
About 780,000 pressure washers sold at retailers like Home Depot are being recalled across the U.S. and Canada, due to a projectile hazard that has resulted in fractures and other injuries among some consumers.
