About half of North Carolina parents report struggling to afford food

While you might feel some relief at the register, you aren’t alone if you’re still struggling to get groceries. Many North Carolinians are feeling squeezed in the current economy.

More than four out of every ten residents say the price increases are "very stressful," according to the recent Household Pulse Survey from the U.S. Census Bureau. And that's impacting food affordability.

About half of parents in the state report not being able to afford enough food or variety for their kids, the survey shows. That’s up from about a third of parents in 2022 when WRAL Data Trackers first looked into this.

"I have seen it increase, definitely," said Stacia Gluth, a Wake Forest mom who joked she only had one daughter because it was all she could afford. She said she has noticed it more with certain products like meat.

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But the consumer price index reports that grocery prices are up less than a 1 percent, year-over-year.

Economist Dr. Michael Walden says prices are going up in other places like rent or mortgage payments and that’s combined with people having 5% less purchasing power.

"Most people have seen their wages go up and earnings over time but they're not enough to compensate for the higher prices," he said.

And that's trickling down to other places where we spend money which is why consumers are still struggling when it comes to grocery shopping despite the prices pretty much leveling out.

"I’m not surprised that people are concerned and not surprised that people are having to make choices," he said.

Walden says it will turn around, but it’ll likely be at least a year until that purchasing power has evened out.