Overwhelming Majority of Consumers Stressed About Grocery Costs
A new poll confirms that grocery prices are still top of mind among today’s consumers. According to a survey conducted by The Associated Press and NORC Center for Public Affairs Research at the University of Chicago, only 14% of Americans report that managing their grocery budget is not a source of stress.
About half of the survey respondents – 53% – agreed that grocery prices are a major source of anxiety in their day-to-day lives. A third of the respondents described grocery expenses as minorly stress- inducing.
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To alleviate that stress, 19% of consumers said that they have used deferred payments from service providers like Afterpay or Klarna to buy groceries at some point. Survey respondents also indicated that they use "buy now pay later" options for restaurant meals, entertainment and medical or dental care.
Deferred payments for everyday essentials seem to be more popular among consumers under the age of 45. The younger cohort puts grocery costs on par with housing costs in terms of stressors: 55% of respondents between the ages of 18 and 44 report that the cost of food at home causes them major stress and 56% agree that the housing costs are a significant worry. Those two categories outweigh stress about health care costs, wages, savings, credit card debt, student loans and child care.
This poll was conducted by AP and NORC from July 10-14.
