High Inflation to Impact Thanksgiving Plans, From Turkey to Travel

This Thanksgiving is looking much more expensive than the last.

Talking Turkey: The average price of a fresh turkey last week was $2.23/lb, up from $1.83 last year, according to Department of Agriculture (USDA) data, and the Farm Bureau estimates that the average Thanksgiving dinner will cost 20% more than last year. Making matters worse is a bird flu outbreak that's killed 6 million turkeys, roughly 3% of the U.S. stock.

Big Picture: Overall, inflation was up 7.7% in October from last year, holiday-season airfares are expected to be up to 43% higher than last year, and a looming rail strike could cause major supply chain and public transportation disruptions.

Where People Agreed: Sources from NPR (Lean Left bias) to Fox News (Right bias) highlighted the higher costs and how they're impacting consumers. 

Where People Disagreed: One writer for Slate argued that because frozen turkey "was at just $1 a pound last week," actual current turkey prices "are nowhere near what the Farm Bureau says they are." The writer also highlighted how "according to the USDA, almost 9 in 10 U.S. supermarkets are offering a sale on turkey—and there are more sales this year than last." An article from NPR focused on "taking on classic Thanksgiving dishes and finding substitutions that cost what those dishes cost in 2020." Right-rated outlets focused more exclusively on evidence of much higher prices and frustrated consumers, and many framed the Biden Administration as worthy of blame.