Cooking at home is more expensive than it’s ever been. Check the cost of groceries in the Mid-Atlantic

Egg prices cracked a new ceiling in 2022, rising a record 32.2 percent over the previous year’s price. While the 20-year historical level of retail food price inflation is 2.0 percent per year, last year inflation across almost all food categories shot up nearly 10%.

According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), the cost of groceries rose by an average of 11.4% in 2022 and is expected to increase by another 10% in 2023.

Never mind the cost of eating in restaurants — cooking at home is as expensive as it has ever been. Good home cooking allows home cooks to simplify meal preparation, produce tastier food, and save money. As an added benefit, home-cooked food tends to be much healthier than restaurant or takeout food, since the cook is in complete control of the fat, sugar, and salt content.

Here are some of the recent costs of food and beverages in the U.S. and the Mid-Atlantic.