Survey: Inflation Has Families Choosing Food Over Gifts

Unlike those that earn more, households with lower incomes plan to cut back on presents this holiday season, in some cases budgeting nothing at all—mostly because of rising food costs, a new survey shows. 

Families making under $50,000 plan to cut their holiday spending by 22% on average, paring back to $536 from $688 the year before, according to a survey by consulting firm Deloitte published Wednesday. What’s more, some 11.5% of households—nearly two-thirds of whom (65%) have lower incomes—plan to spend nothing at all, up from 4.9% the year before. Meanwhile, middle- and higher-income households—those making $50,000 and up—plan to increase their spending.

Among the families cutting back on spending, 50% said the rising cost of food was a factor, making it the most commonly cited reason in the survey of 4,315 U.S. consumers, conducted in September. Only 31% said the same last year. The price of food has risen 4.6% over the past year as of September, making it one of the leading contributors to inflation, according to the government’s latest Consumer Price Index report. 

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