Romaine lettuce, eggs, and other groceries that dropped in price in the South last month

Grocery shoppers felt a slight reprieve this spring as grocery prices fell after a run of increases spanning back to September 2020.

So far this summer, grocery prices have remained relatively steady, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data. In July, prices inflated by 0.3% compared to June, and were up 3.6% from July 2022. Urban prices have fallen in many grocery categories, including eggs, meats, vegetables, grains, and dairy products. Overall inflation is cooling as well after a series of interest rate hikes by the Fed to temper the record inflation plaguing Americans over the past two years.

While costs remain high overall, the decreases mean dollars can stretch a bit further at the grocery store. Stacker used monthly Bureau of Labor Statistics data to find the grocery items that experienced the largest price decreases 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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#8. Dried beans (per lb.)

– One-month decrease in cost: -0.1%
– Annual change in cost: +3.0%
– July 2023 cost: $1.52

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#8. Whole milk (per gal.)

– One-month decrease in cost: -0.1%
– Annual change in cost: +1.9%
– July 2023 cost: $4.07

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#7. Ground coffee (per lb.)

– One-month decrease in cost: -0.3%
– Annual change in cost: +1.9%
– July 2023 cost: $5.87

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#6. Malt beverages (per 16 oz.)

– One-month decrease in cost: -0.7%
– Annual change in cost: -0.1%
– July 2023 cost: $1.62

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

– One-month decrease in cost: -1.2%
– Annual change in cost: +17.2%
– July 2023 cost: $1.17

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

– One-month decrease in cost: -2.5%
– Annual change in cost: +4.6%
– July 2023 cost: $5.7

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#3. Whole chicken (per lb.)

– One-month decrease in cost: -3.7%
– Annual change in cost: +1.4%
– July 2023 cost: $1.76

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#2. Eggs (per doz.)

– One-month decrease in cost: -6.8%
– Annual change in cost: -34.1%
– July 2023 cost: $1.8

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#1. Romaine lettuce (per lb.)

– One-month decrease in cost: -9.2%
– Annual change in cost: Not available
– July 2023 cost: $2.29