NY Farm Bureau Survey of 2022 Thanksgiving Dinner costs

The price for Thanksgiving dinner is up 26% for this year.

The New York Farm Bureau’s 2022 Market Basket Survey shows the average total price, which includes a 16-pound turkey and other common items found on a holiday dinner table, is $66.39, up from last year’s price of $52.59.

The Bureau’s volunteer shoppers found turkey prices to be about $1.89 per pound in New York State, which is 43 cents per pound over last year’s average price in this informal survey. This price is slightly above the national average of $1.81/lb.

The New York numbers revealed price increases over last year in nearly every category, except for fresh cranberries which saw a 30-cent decrease. The most notable increases were for stuffing mix, brown-and-serve rolls, and frozen pie crusts.

This year’s survey also includes a similar increase for an expanded menu that includes a four-pound ham, five-pound bag of russet potatoes and a package of frozen green beans. When those prices are included, the total meal price jumps to $82.16, or a 22% increase over last year’s number. New York shoppers found bargains on hams compared to the national numbers, with a four-pound ham costing $10.08 or $1.56 less than the national average.

The increased prices reflect the continued supply and demand issues, higher commodity prices because of the war in Ukraine, as well as the increased costs for packaging and transportation.

Despite those increases, the Farm Bureau says most of those higher costs do not trickle down to the farmer who receives only about eight cents of each dollar consumers spend on food at the store. The rest goes to pay for things like marketing, processing, and transportation of the food.

This dinner price represents the greatest increase since the survey began more than three decades ago.