One woman believes food inflation is far worse than reports are letting on.
In a viral video that has amassed over 344,000 views, TikTok user Ghost (@thedivinemaximalist) argued that prices have soared, especially for Great Value items.
@thedivinemaximalist #greenscreen #greenscreenvideo ♬ original sound – ghost
“So prices are skyrocketing, and I decided to do a little deep dive into my own Walmart orders to see like what the deal is here,” she began.
The TikToker shared a screenshot of an article that claimed food prices rose 4.9% between the summer of 2022-2023 based on statistics from the Consumer Price Index (CPI) Report from the Bureau of Labor.
“But I think that’s a lie,” she added.
To prove that companies are jacking up prices far beyond the CPI reported 4.9%, @thedivinemaximalist compared the cost of items she bought at Walmart in the summer of 2022 to the cost for the same things in 2023. Apparently, at least at the location the TikToker shops at, the cost for Goldfish rose a whopping 33%, Great Value Granola Bars went up by 41%, Great Value Saltine Crackers are up 55%, and ground beef went up 20%.
“And one thing I’ve noticed is Great Value seems to be skyrocketing for some reason,” she said.
The TikToker also pointed out the “cheese tax” and did the math on the price of a pack of shredded cheddar cheese, which increased by 43%. She also compared price changes for Red Barron Pizza, Land O’Lakes Butter, Heinz Tomato Ketchup, and other popular grocery items. They all rose between 30%-40%.
“So yeah, that 4.9% is definitely looking a little low, and I’m pretty sure that it’s just gonna keep going up,” she concluded.
In the comments, shoppers agreed that prices have risen more than reported and contemplated taking action.
“How do we fight back??” user @dalynn772 asked. “We need to be the resistance.”
“This was an amazing comparison,” @ike_incorporated added. “They act like inflation was single digits but it’s clearly not.”
“They manipulate the numbers,” another user said. “I’ve been saying groceries are up 30-50%.”
The Daily Dot contacted a Walmart representative for more information and reached out to @thedevinemaximalist via TikTok comment.
