Shrinkflation -- 15 Cheap Foods People Can't Afford Anymore

You’re not imagining it – it's much more expensive to stock up your fridge and pantry now than ever before. Even if you pick the cheapest options or purchase the same products as always, your final grocery bill is probably higher than it was a few months ago. And it's safe to say that the difference is much more pronounced when comparing to one or two years ago. In fact, before the pandemic hit, Americans were paying about 36% less for food.

And even though official inflation numbers have been falling, there are many manifestations of the painful reality that the cost of living is rising, and food prices are one of them. Not only we're paying more, but we're taking home less for our money. Many food producers are shrinking the size of their products because they realized they can't keep raising prices without experiencing a decline in sales. For that reason, these companies have started to sell a smaller amount of product for the same price, so that they can optimize profits without making consumers face sticker shock.

Several items that used to be considered cheap have skyrocketed in price this year, becoming a luxury only a few can afford. Today, we listed some examples and the reason why these popular foods are getting out of the reach of many Americans.