CHARLOTTE, N.C. — With Thanksgiving less than a week away, families across the Carolinas are making their final preparations for the big day.
Despite high inflation, the cost of Thanksgiving dinner might actually be a little cheaper than you think, experts say.
Leaving the grocery store, Jackson McIlwain and Ashley Matias went through their Thanksgiving haul in the parking lot of Harris Teeter on Park Road. They picked up classic items like macaroni and cheese, plus a few extras, like a disposable roasting pan for their Thanksgiving turkey.
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While going through their stuff, Matais reminisced about better times when it wasn't so expensive to cook a big meal.
"Yeah, way more than it used to be," she said.
The totals this year are still high on some products, but a few things will be a little lighter on your wallet. The American Farm Bureau Federation said last year to this year, turkeys are about 5% cheaper. The cost of cranberries is about 18% cheaper. The average for a 10-person meal is close to $60, which is down around 4% from last year's prices.
According to the Consumer Price Index for October, year-over-year, inflation is up over 2%. So people might beg the question, why am I spending less on some items?
Professor Joseph Von Nessen with the USC Darla Moore School of Business said there are a few factors.
"Supply chains, and constraints from the past few years, and they have been partially been resolved," Von Nessen said. "We’ve seen a decrease in gas prices which lowered transportation costs.”
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