Analysts at USDA project shoppers will have paid between 10 and 11 percent more for food at grocery stores this year.
Last month saw big declines in energy prices combined with zero inflation, which they believe might slow the rise in prices at least for the rest of the year.
They note farm-level soybeans and wheat also fell by double digits, which could also help slow the price growth. Currently, food prices have risen by 9 percent, but that is expected to rise.
“So, we do not expect a price decrease, but a leveling out of price increases that they would increase more slowly than they did in the first part of the year,” said Matt MacLachlan with USDA’s Economic Research Service.
He adds he expects prices to level off between the 10 and 11 percent mark.
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