Upstream Pressure

Food and Beverages CPI

Year-over-year change in food and beverage prices

What is the current Food and Beverages CPI?

GROCERY PRICE INFLATION
3.33% ↑ Worsening
year-over-year increase in food prices

The food-at-home Consumer Price Index rose 3.33% year-over-year in the latest reading, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Grocery prices continue to outpace overall inflation, compounding a cumulative 32.7% increase since January 2020. Food costs disproportionately burden lower-income households who spend a larger share of income on groceries. Source: BLS (CUSR0000SAF1).

Food and Beverages CPI rising to 3.2%

Tracking worsening relative to recent baseline.

Source: BLS via official source ↗

Explore Further

How has Food and Beverages CPI changed over time?

CSV Chart Card
Food and Beverages CPI over time
Food and beverages CPI, year-over-year percentage change
Food and Beverages CPI
Historical data
Monthly · BLS
Period Value YoY Change
Feb 2026 3.33% +0.8 pts
Jan 2026 3.23% +0.8 pts
Dec 2025 3.3% +0.8 pts
Nov 2025 2.98% +0.6 pts
Sep 2025 3.11% +0.8 pts
Aug 2025 3.2% +1.1 pts
Jul 2025 2.89% +0.7 pts
Jun 2025 2.99% +0.7 pts
May 2025 2.9% +0.7 pts
Apr 2025 2.75% +0.5 pts
Mar 2025 2.92% +0.7 pts
Feb 2025 2.55% +0.3 pts

Frequently Asked Questions

How fast are grocery prices rising?

Food-at-home prices rose 3.33% year-over-year in the latest BLS report. Cumulatively, grocery prices are up 32.7% since January 2020.

Why does food inflation matter for financial distress?

Food is non-discretionary spending. When grocery costs rise faster than wages, households must cut other spending or take on debt to eat — a direct driver of the financial distress the ADI tracks.

Where does food CPI data come from?

Published monthly by the Bureau of Labor Statistics as part of the CPI report, series CUSR0000SAF1 (food at home).

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Why does Food and Beverages CPI matter?

Food and Beverages CPI is one of 91 indicators in the American Distress Index's upstream pressure layer — the signal that predicted the 2008 crisis two years before delinquency data confirmed it.
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