The latest inflation data is showing that the prices of a kitchen staple has soared.
Something it’s been doing over the past year.
Fox Business reports that — according to the December consumer price index (CPI), as released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics — the prices of beef and veal rose about one percent in comparison to the month prior. Both have risen by 16.4 percent from a year ago.
Additionally, Fox Business adds that the price for beef steaks went up by 3.1 percent in December. That number is 17.8 percent when looking at the same month the year before.
Ground beef and beef roast prices also rose 15.5 percent and 17.5 percent, respectively, over the past year. And customers seem to have been feeling the strain beef prices have been putting on their wallets within that year’s time.
“Beef prices are absolutely insane,” a Reddit post headline reads from a month ago, too.
“It’s pretty bad,” a commenter wrote. “Try to check your local supermarket sales for the loss leaders in meat and then stock up in the freezer. It helps alleviate the sting a little bit.
“So you’re saying that you have a beef with beef prices?” someone joked.
As for the reason behind this rise in prices, Fox Business points to the fact that the country’s cattle inventory has hit its lowest level in about 70 years due to factors such as drought. Overhead costs for cattle ranchers, too, have gone up.
Overall food prices were up 3.1 percent in comparison to a year ago.