Turkey Price Up in October: $1.66 Per Pound

(CNSNews.com) – The average price for a pound of turkey increased over the month from September to October, from $1.584 to $1.667 per pound, an increase of 5.2 percent, according to data released today by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).

In November 2013, the price for a pound of turkey hit a record high of $1.819, according to the BLS. Since then, the price has declined 8.4 percent.

A decade ago, in October 2004, the price of a pound of turkey was $1.123. Since then, the price of turkey has increased 54.4 cents or 48.4 percent.

Five years ago, in October 2009, the price of turkey was $1.480, which means that since then the price has increased 18.7 cents, or 12.6 percent.

As seen in the attached chart, the price of turkey increased the most in years from 2007 to 2010.

While the actual price for a pound of turkey increased over the month September to October, the index labeled “other poultry including turkey” declined.

The overall Consumer Price Index measures the relative change in the prices of a basket of goods and services relative to a basis of 100.  Subordinate indexes measure the relative change in price for individual goods or services or categories of goods and services.

The price index for seasonally adjusted “other poultry including turkey” declined from the 156.110 index in September to the 154.378 index it was in October. In 1997, the earliest year in this index, it was 101.4.

“The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) was unchanged in October on a seasonally adjusted basis,” the BLS reported. “Over the last 12 months, the all items index increased 1.7 percent before seasonal adjustment.”

“The all items index increased 1.7 percent over the last 12 months, the same increase as for the 12 months ending September,” said the BLS. “The index for all items less food and energy increased 1.8 percent over the span, and the food index rose 3.1 percent.”

“The food index rose 0.1 percent in October, its smallest increase since June,” stated BLS. “The index for meats, poultry, fish, and eggs, which had been rising sharply in recent months, declined 0.4 percent. The beef and veal index rose 0.3 percent, but the indexes for pork, poultry, and eggs all declined.”