How much disposable income are consumers spending to put food on the table?

It comes as no surprise grocery proces have taken steep climbs in recent years.

New data from USDA shows just how much disposable income consumers are spending to put food on the table.

They found that in 2023, U.S. consumers spent around 11 percent of their disposable income on food, and that is right in line with spending levels in 2022.

“Food at home” purchases fell a couple of points during 2023, with “food away from home” jumping nearly half a percent.

They place the rise on more disposable income, with consumers starting to return to outside the home eateries.

Related Stories
Smaller slaughter numbers across beef and pork signal tighter supplies into late 2025, while record-low veal production highlights ongoing structural changes in the sector.
RFD-TV Farm Legal and Taxation expert Roger McEowen joined us Friday to break down the executive order and what it means for farmers and ranchers.
Farm CPA Paul Neiffer joined us on Friday’s Market Day Report to break down what this extension means for affected ranchers.
Lower inventories and cautious farrowing plans suggest tighter hog supplies into 2026, keeping producer margins sensitive to demand trends and health risks.
Transportation challenges are mounting as droughts lower Mississippi River levels and push freight rates higher.
Waiting could risk leaving next year’s crop unprotected.

LATEST STORIES BY THIS AUTHOR:

The Senate failed to pass a continuing resolution that had been approved by the House the previous week. They could take it up again today, but it would take seven democrats to end the stalemate.
The USDA is working with 14 different states, including Georgia, to develop and implement block grants to address the unique disaster recovery needs for each state.
The decline in production marks the second consecutive year of contraction in the U.S. turkey industry.
“Those could’ve easily been our beans going over there. It goes to show that if that opportunity is there, China would be willing to buy.”
We caught up with Karen Braun, Chief Market Analyst at Zaner Ag Hedge, at the Women in Agribusiness to discuss the data behind commodity trading.