OUCH, THAT BURNS: Cookouts this year are going to cost consumers so much more than last year, according to both the Pennsylvania Farm Bureau and the American Farm Bureau Federation.

According to their survey, this holiday weekend, the costs will have increased around 17% over the same time last year.

Some of your favorite foods for a cookout might be price higher than ever this year, “including cheeseburgers, pork chops, chicken breasts, homemade potato salad, strawberries and ice cream…Regionally, the average cost of a July 4th cookout for 10 people in the Northeast Region this year is $67.13, or $6.71 per person, up from $61.75 in 2021.” according to the AFBF market basket survey, pfb.com/afbf-cost-of-july-4th-cookout-17-higher-than-in-2021/ .

Here are a few interesting price-points (according to the survey):

2 pounds of ground beef, $11.12 (+36%)

2 pounds of boneless, skinless chicken breasts, $8.99 (+33%)

32 ounces of pork & beans, $2.53 (+33%)

3 pounds of center cut pork chops, $15.26 (+31%)

8 hamburger buns, $1.93 (+16%)

Half-gallon of vanilla ice cream, $5.16 (+10%)

2 pints of strawberries, $4.44 (-16%)

1 pound of sliced cheese, $3.53 (-13%)

16-ounce bag of potato chips, $4.71 (-4%)

Note: these prices are not necessarily what is the going rate here in Bradford.

And, it is not only the consumer feeling the burn. The farmers who supply the food are feeling pain, too. According to one economist, “the higher prices farmers are being paid aren’t covering the increase in their farm expenses. The cost of fuel is up and fertilizer prices have tripled.”

The survey cites a tie to the war in Ukraine and issues getting fertilizer from Russia and Belarus, as a possible piece of the puzzle as well.