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Ice cream, american cheese, and other groceries that rose in price in the South last month

For the first time since September 2020, the overall cost of groceries fell in March in comparison to the previous month.

Urban grocery prices decreased by about 0.2% from March to February, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data. The drop was largely fueled by decreases in eggs—which had previously risen dramatically over a short period of time—as well as meats, fruits and vegetables, and dairy products.

Still, inflation continued to plague shoppers. The overall cost of groceries in March remained up 8.4% from 2022—the result of historically high inflation in the past couple years following a series of major social and economic events including the COVID-19 pandemic, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, labor disruptions, and heightened consumer demand. Overall, inflation has cooled some, but still hasn’t reached pre-pandemic levels.

Despite the overall monthly lull, groceries in some categories continued to climb. Stacker used monthly data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics to find the grocery items that experienced the largest price increases over the last month in the South, using year-over-year changes as a tiebreaker where needed. For this analysis, the South includes Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, Washington, D.C., Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and West Virginia. Stacker excluded some hyper-specific meat categories in order to better understand grocery price fluctuations more broadly.

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#11. Spaghetti and macaroni (per lb.)

– One-month increase in cost: +0.3%
– Annual change in cost: +36.2%
– March 2023 cost: $1.18

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#10. Long-grain white rice (per lb.)

– One-month increase in cost: +0.9%
– Annual change in cost: +16.1%
– March 2023 cost: $1.08

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#9. Chocolate chip cookies (per lb.)

– One-month increase in cost: +1.1%
– Annual change in cost: Not available
– March 2023 cost: $5.48

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#8. Malt beverages (per 16 oz.)

– One-month increase in cost: +1.3%
– Annual change in cost: +8.3%
– March 2023 cost: $1.68

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#7. Lemons (per lb.)

– One-month increase in cost: +1.7%
– Annual change in cost: +4.6%
– March 2023 cost: $2.29

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#6. Beef steaks (per lb.)

– One-month increase in cost: +1.8%
– Annual change in cost: +0.3%
– March 2023 cost: $9.36

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#5. White bread (per lb.)

– One-month increase in cost: +3.4%
– Annual change in cost: +28.8%
– March 2023 cost: $1.77

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#4. Cheddar cheese, natural (per lb.)

– One-month increase in cost: +5.6%
– Annual change in cost: +17.4%
– March 2023 cost: $5.96

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#3. Potato chips (per 16 oz.)

– One-month increase in cost: +5.8%
– Annual change in cost: +24.3%
– March 2023 cost: $7.12

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#2. American processed cheese (per lb.)

– One-month increase in cost: +7.2%
– Annual change in cost: +27.1%
– March 2023 cost: $4.8

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#1. Ice cream, prepackaged in bulk (per 1/2 gal.)

– One-month increase in cost: +9.2%
– Annual change in cost: Not available
– March 2023 cost: $5.94