A 28-item grocery order that cost $64.50 in 2020 reportedly costs $158.30 today.
In this episode of The Secret War on Cash, Dean Heskin and Chris Agelastos use that receipt comparison to expose the deeper erosion of household purchasing power.
Food is only one part of the pressure. Families are also facing rising rents, higher energy costs, growing credit-card balances and an increase in home foreclosures. Many are no longer cutting luxuries. They are cutting meals, delaying bills and returning to work after retirement because the basic cost of living has moved beyond what their income can support.
Dean and Chris also discuss the worsening public outlook on the economy, the political consequences of prolonged financial pain and the challenge facing millions of Americans who remain outside the labor force.
When two-thirds of the country describes groceries as unaffordable, the problem is no longer abstract inflation data. It is a direct threat to household stability.
The conversation asks a simple question Washington still seems unwilling to answer:
What happens when food, shelter and energy all become unaffordable at the same time?
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