Grocery Prices Are Up

The high price of Trump’s chaos will impact your Thanksgiving.

Nov 25, 2025

A week after this month's elections, Donald Trump announced a tariff suspension on over 200 food items. The timing was a direct response to the recent election results. Exit polls showed that the cost of living, especially food prices, was the top concern for voters.

Lowering tariffs can help moderate prices at the margins, something American families will welcome. However, to truly address rising food costs, a more comprehensive approach to affordability is needed.

Unfortunately, Trump’s overall approach to the economy, combined with his governance style, falls far short of what is needed. In fact, many experts fear that Trump’s approach to trade, labor, energy, and regulation has amplified the very pressures that were driving up food costs.

COVID’s supply shocks made the system fragile; Trump’s governing style made it even more unstable.

Food Prices Are Still Rising

If you’ve been to the grocery store recently, you already know this. But let’s take a look at what government and industry data show.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that food-at-home prices are up 2.7 percent year-over-year as of September 2025. Some causes, like extreme weather or disease outbreaks, are beyond any president’s control. And yes, food inflation is part of a global pattern. But the U.S. experience stands out — not because prices are the highest, but because our food system is uniquely vulnerable to labor shortages, energy shocks, tariff volatility, and corporate concentration. Those pressures make it harder for American families to escape inflation, and Trump’s policies have repeatedly amplified them.

Below are some of the food items experiencing the greatest price increases, along with the policy drivers behind them. Except for eggs, these tariff reductions will affect these items only marginally.

Eggs up 10-20%: Avian flu losses, high feed costs, and supply-chain disruptions.
Beef & Veal up 5.2%: Smaller cattle herds, higher transport and feed costs, export volatility. (Beef imports were included in the tariff exemptions.)
Non-alcoholic beverages up 5.3%: Higher input and energy costs; some inputs (coffee, tea, citrus, cocoa) were included in tariff exemptions, but the primary driver is still energy and packaging.
Sugar & Sweets up 4.5%: Refining and energy costs; limited connection to tariff changes except for cocoa and spices.
Fresh produce, rising in many regions: Labor shortages, climate shocks, and reduced seasonal immigration; partial tariff relevance (bananas, oranges, tomatoes).

The food system is absorbing multiple shocks at once, and policy decisions can either cushion or amplify those shocks.

How Trump’s Policies Make Food More Expensive

1. Trade policy driven by impulse, not strategy

Tariff hikes, sudden reversals, and unpredictable negotiations create chronic uncertainty. Producers and retailers respond by padding margins, raising prices, and slowing investment. In fact, even now, these recent exemptions are tied to ongoing trade negotiations, meaning their long-term status is uncertain.

2. Immigration crackdowns that shrink the workforce

Farm labor shortages mean crops go unpicked, harvests shrink, and processing plants slow down. Trump’s aggressive and often chaotic enforcement actions have reduced both documented and undocumented agricultural labor.

3. Energy and clean-tech rollbacks

Fuel, fertilizer, and electricity costs ripple through every stage of food production. Trump’s rollback of rural wind and solar programs eliminated low-cost energy options that many farmers rely on. Energy costs are a driver of food prices.

4. Cuts to SNAP and farm programs

When SNAP benefits are cut, households buy less, distorting demand. When farm programs are weakened or suspended, farmers plant less, distorting supply.

Both push prices upward.

5. Cronyism and regulatory capture

Trump appointed industry insiders to regulate their own sectors:

Meatpacking consolidation deepened
Antitrust enforcement weakened
Safety and climate programs were dismantled.

The result: a handful of corporations gained power to set prices for both farmers and families.

What You Can Do

Get Educated, Stay informed.

CBS price tracker: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/price-tracker/
NBC grocery tracker: https://www.nbcnews.com/data-graphics/grocery-price-tracker-inflation-trends-eggs-bread-trump-administration-rcna239569
Civil Eats has an excellent newsletter focused on food systems. You can sign up here: https://civileats.com/newsletter/

Support fair food systems

Buy from regional co-ops, CSAs, and small producers.

Find Your Local CSA: https://www.ams.usda.gov/local-food-directories/csas

Feed your community

Support food banks and mutual aid networks,

Find Your Local Food Bank here: https://www.feedingamerica.org/find-your-local-foodbank

Find Your Local Mutual Aid Society: https://www.mutualaidhub.org/

Collective Action

Join with others in your community to oppose Trump’s policies.

A great way to find out what opportunities exist in your community is moblize.us.
If you want help in finding volunteer opportunities, contact a Volunteer Blue volunteer coach. https://volunteerblue.org/action-coach-sign-up/

And of course, share this post with your friends and family.

My son and I wish you all a happy Thanksgiving. We are thankful for all of you who read and engage with us!