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The price of PB&J is going up
Say it ain't so: One of the cheapest sandwiches you can make at home soon won't cost so little.
The cost of one of the cheapest sandwiches in the brown-bagger's repertoire is about to go up -- in a very big way.
J.M. Smucker Co., owner of popular brand Jif, announced a 30% price hike for November -- just in time for National Peanut Butter Lovers Month -- and it won't be the only peanut butter maker to raise prices.
Smucker says it will increase the price of the "J" part of PB&J by 4% too.
"So as consumers we're buying peanut butter for a little more than $3 a jar (and) we're going to be paying over $4 a jar when that price increase hits," Shelly Nutt, the exquisitely named executive director of the Texas Peanut Producers, told the Fox TV station in Lubbock, Texas. "And I think we're going to see it for all the peanut butter companies, not just Jif."
Considering that the average child will eat 1,500 PB&Js by the time she or he graduates from high school -- a "fun fact" from the National Peanut Board (more of them below) -- and that peanut butter is eaten in 90% of U.S. households, this price increase will be very noticeable.
A couple factors are to blame:
Peanut butter was the secret behind "Mr. Ed," TV's talking horse.
Tom Miller pushed a peanut to the top of Pike's Peak (14,100 feet) using his nose in 4 days, 23 hours, 47 minutes and 3 seconds.
Say it ain't so: One of the cheapest sandwiches you can make at home soon won't cost so little.
The cost of one of the cheapest sandwiches in the brown-bagger's repertoire is about to go up -- in a very big way.
J.M. Smucker Co., owner of popular brand Jif, announced a 30% price hike for November -- just in time for National Peanut Butter Lovers Month -- and it won't be the only peanut butter maker to raise prices.
Smucker says it will increase the price of the "J" part of PB&J by 4% too.
"So as consumers we're buying peanut butter for a little more than $3 a jar (and) we're going to be paying over $4 a jar when that price increase hits," Shelly Nutt, the exquisitely named executive director of the Texas Peanut Producers, told the Fox TV station in Lubbock, Texas. "And I think we're going to see it for all the peanut butter companies, not just Jif."
Considering that the average child will eat 1,500 PB&Js by the time she or he graduates from high school -- a "fun fact" from the National Peanut Board (more of them below) -- and that peanut butter is eaten in 90% of U.S. households, this price increase will be very noticeable.
A couple factors are to blame:
- Too little rain, including record drought in Texas and excessive heat in Georgia, which produces almost half of the U.S. peanut crop. Janet Cho wrote at The Plain Dealer:
- Competition from other crops. About 141,000 fewer U.S. acres were dedicated to peanuts this year.
- Compare the price with other low-cost sandwich ingredients. Salami and bologna sandwiches were actually cheaper than PB&J, according to Len Penzo's 2010 analysis.
- Try the store brand. It will still be cheaper than the name brands. Len Penzo's peanut butter taste test ranked Albertsons No. 1, beating out Jif, Skippy and Peter Pan.
- Grin and bear it. This is a temporary increase unless next season's crop is a bust. And remember that you're still saving money when you pack your lunch for school or work.
Peanut butter was the secret behind "Mr. Ed," TV's talking horse.
Tom Miller pushed a peanut to the top of Pike's Peak (14,100 feet) using his nose in 4 days, 23 hours, 47 minutes and 3 seconds.
