Build A Burger

This article in POLITICO is fascinating to me. If you’re curious about how rising food costs (in restaurants) impact dishes, check out this analysis of a cheeseburger’s ingredients. It lists the rise in prices over the past year of basic elements and what’s causing the increase (spoiler, it’s generally interrupted supply chains, dire labor shortages, climate disasters and, most recently, the war in Ukraine). Obviously this effects pricing at the grocery store too, with 12-month increases the highest since 1981. All of this and more in the article, please check it out.

Some highlights:

• The price of bread went up 7.1%, while the price of all bakery products climbed 9.1%
• The price of bacon has jumped 18.2%
• The price of eggs was up 11.2%
• The average avocado price is $1.39, which is 39% higher than it was the same time last year
• The price of tomatoes price ticked up 1.7%
• The cost of lettuce increased 12%
• The price of fats and oils was up 14.9%
• The price of cheese climbed 3.1%
• Beef now costs 16 percent more than this time last year

If your head is spinning by the end of this article, imagine being a restaurant owner. Now imagine pricing out a more complicated menu item. Now go to a restaurant and pay whatever they want, don’t complain, and tip well.