The Price of a July 4 Cookout

As memories of Covid-19 restrictions are quickly fading, Americans are looking forward to proper, carefree Fourth of July celebrations this year. According to AAA, more than 50 million Americans will travel at least 50 miles this Independence Day weekend in order to celebrate with their friends and families – a new record.

Aside from the obligatory fireworks, a proper cookout is the key ingredient for a real Independence Day celebration in many households. Speaking of ingredients: how much will a typical Fourth of July menu set you back these days? Well, there’s good news and there’s bad news. The bad news is that inflation makes no exception for national holidays, so expect your feast to be more expensive than a couple of years ago. The good news is that the prices for some food staples have eased over the past 12 months.

According to the American Farm Bureau’s annual Fourth of July market basket survey, a 10-person cookout involving cheeseburgers, chicken breasts, pork chops and several sides and dessert options will cost $67.73 this year. That’s up roughly 14 percent from 2021, but down by almost 3 percent compared to last year. One reason for the year-over-year decline in the overall price is the easing of chicken and pork prices, which were down 9 and 6 percent from last year’s survey, respectively, and account for a sizeable chunk of the overall costs.