Target is offering a traditional Thanksgiving feast for $20 per person, which is $5 cheaper than last year. The meal includes turkey, potatoes, stuffing, gravy, cranberry sauce, green beans, and mushroom soup, designed to serve four people. Target Circle 360 members will also receive a free pizza. In addition, side dishes and desserts like mac and cheese and pies are available for under $5.
Other big-box retailers like Walmart and Aldi have also announced lower-cost Thanksgiving meals. Walmart’s “inflation-free Thanksgiving meal” includes 29 items serving eight people for less than $7 per person, a lower price than last year. Aldi’s 10-person Thanksgiving meal is priced below what it would have cost in 2019. Inflation rates have cooled in 2024, with consumer price inflation rising just 1.6% and food prices climbing only 0.5% on the year.
However, many consumers, especially those with lower incomes, are still feeling the impact of overall price increases since the pandemic began. A recent Federal Reserve study found that lower-income earners have seen retail spending decline since mid-2021 and have only seen a 7.8% increase since 2018, compared to higher and middle-income earners. This discrepancy in spending rates was not present before the pandemic.
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