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Saturday, February 05, 2005
NY supermarkets: It's not just me

I've previously expressed my distaste for New York supermarkets this January and last October. Here's proof that I'm not imagining things! Check out this New York Times article:

Food Prices in New York in Biggest Leap in 14 Years

January 20, 2005
By JENNIFER STEINHAUER

The Consumer Price Index for the New York region rose 3.8 percent as an overall average in 2004, the federal government said yesterday, as higher food prices and rising fuel costs drove the largest year-to-year increase in the index since 1990 ...

Food prices, especially for products bought in grocery stores, rose more in the New York region than anywhere else in the country.

Since December 2003, the price for food in grocery stores in the New York metropolitan region rose 5.5 percent compared with 2.5 percent nationally ...

The rise in the region's food prices is particularly striking compared with Los Angeles, where the increase was 0.5 percent, and Chicago, where the increase was 1.6 percent ...

The rising costs of food around New York, when compared with other cities, suggest that there is more at work than hurricanes and other disasters that created a sharp increase in fruit and vegetable costs, or the explosion of milk prices in recent months.

"As we all know, the cost factors of doing business in New York are much higher," said John Catsimatidis, chief executive of the Gristedes supermarket chain, which has about 50 stores in the city.

He said rising rent, utility and labor costs, combined with increased competition, are pushing prices upward. "If you look at Northeast supermarkets, nobody is getting rich," Mr. Catsimatidis said. "I would be better off getting rid of all of my stores based on the value of the real estate alone."

His complaint might not generate much sympathy from residents of the region, where supermarkets are known for their miniature aisles, poor selection and general lack of customer service.

Thank you! I knew $3 for a loaf of bread, $5 for a pound of butter, and $4 for a box of cereal was too much. That's why I'll go out of my way to shop at cheap places, even if it means the commute takes longer than the actual time to shop.

posted by Jessica at 8:55 PM | 0 comments

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