All turkey all the time
By Flickr user Matther Moore
We’ve pretty much covered the shopping angles; see the previous posts below as well as this one on shop-local campaigns that rev up for holiday time and this one on holiday hiring.
If you’ve had your fill of those angles, as well as the gas-price outlook story for those buzzing over the river and through the woods, and the airline nickel-and-diming for those who brave the skyways, there’s one more realm to dissect: food!
The holiday meal spawns all sorts of interesting trends, involving various biz sectors from retail to restaurant to catering to organic agriculture.
A few examples from this round-up at the Progressive Grocer site:
Cooking help: Chains like ShopRite and Safeway aim to help shoppers serve a better bird with chefs on call and specially prepared turkeys that cook in two hours.
Hours: More chain grocers are choosing to stay open on Thanksgiving – unless they’re forbidden to by state law. What pressure does this put on local chains and standalone gourmet markets?
Takeout: The National Restaurant Association says half of the nation will add some carry-out food to its holiday table – if they’re not skipping the home-cooked spread altogether in lieu of a restaurant meal. What are local bistros cooking up in terms of fixed-price meals, buffets and other economical enticements?
Comfort food: Surveys by The Nielsen Company and others show that traditional foods are at the top of the shopping list for what is expected to be a back-to-basics, relatively frugal feast.
A survey by the Arkansas Farm Bureau and reported by Associated Press last week found that the price of an average Thanksgiving dinner is down this year thanks to a dip in dairy prices. But that is only a 22 cent drop over last year’s price of $40.97.
A survey by the Arkansas Farm Bureau and reported by Associated Press last week found that the price of an average Thanksgiving dinner is down this year thanks to a dip in dairy prices. But that is only a 22 cent drop over last year’s price of $40.97.
