Reports
CPG category reports
What shelf prices, producer costs and the USDA outlook say about one category at a time. Every chart is built from public data, and every number links back to its source.
Brief, Beverages
Bottled water prices: cost, shelf and 2026 outlook
What U.S. bottlers charge for still water was 35% higher in August 2026 than in January 2020, a little ahead of groceries at 32%. Bottlers held prices roughly flat through 2024 and 2025, then raised them from May 2026, while plastic bottle prices rose 7.1% in the year to August. The Consumer Price Index has no line for bottled water, so your own retail data is the clearest read on the shelf.
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Brief, Pantry
Cereal prices: shelf, grain and outlook for 2026
Breakfast cereal prices rose 3.1% in the year to August 2026, more than the 2.2% for all food at home, while the price cereal makers charge barely moved (0.0%). Since January 2020 cereal has still risen less than groceries, 29% against 32%. Wheat and corn got dearer over the year and oats and sugar got cheaper.
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Brief, Channel
Independent grocery stores: count, owners and sales
No yearly public series separates independent grocers from chains, so this brief reads the closest proxies. Census counted 62,947 grocery stores in 2023, 3% fewer than in 2017, while stores with fewer than five employees fell 10% and those run by sole proprietors 23%. In July 2026 supermarket sales were 1.0% above a year earlier, less than the 2.7% rise in grocery prices.
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Brief, Channel
Kroger and Albertsons sales: profit and prices, 2026
Kroger's net sales rose 0.4% in fiscal 2025 and Albertsons' rose 3.5% in a year with an extra week, while operating profit fell 51% at Kroger and 53% at Albertsons. Across all U.S. grocery stores, seasonally adjusted sales rose 0.6% in the year to July 2026, less than the 2.7% rise in grocery prices: a rough sign of lower volume.
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Brief, Channel
Natural channel sales: grocers, UNFI, gross profit
Sprouts Farmers Market grew net sales 14.1% in 2025 and Natural Grocers 7.2% in its fiscal year to September 2025, leaving them 56% and 47% above 2019. UNFI, the public one of the channel's two big distributors, sold 2.0% less in its fiscal year to August 1, 2026, and its 10-K says natural sales rose while conventional and retail sales fell.
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Brief, Pet
Pet food prices: shelf, cost and vet care for 2026
Pet food and treat prices rose 25% from January 2020 to August 2026, less than the 32% rise for all food at home, while the price dog and cat food makers charge rose 34%. Makers' prices have run ahead of the shelf since mid-2021. Two ingredients are now climbing: in the year to August 2026, meat and bone meal rose 16.6% and corn 16.1%.
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Brief, Beverages
Soda prices: shelf, can costs and outlook for 2026
Soda and sparkling water prices rose 41% from January 2020 to August 2026, against 32% for all food at home. In the year to August 2026 they rose 4.4%, and a 12 oz can in a 12-pack averaged $0.60. The producer price of aluminum cans rose 13.9% over the same year, while corn sweeteners and sugar got cheaper.
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Brief, Pantry
Honey prices: supply, shelf and outlook for 2026
U.S. beekeepers got $7.15 a pound for honey they sold retail in 2025, 21% more than in 2024, and 16% more from co-ops and private buyers. They also made 22% less honey than in 2017, from fewer colonies that each produced less. On the shelf, the price index that includes honey rose just 1.7% in the year to August 2026.
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Brief, Meat
Sausage prices: shelf, cost and outlook for 2026
Breakfast sausage prices held steady in the year to August 2026, just 0.1% below a year earlier, while slaughter hogs fell 15% and the price fresh sausage makers charge fell 16%. Over the longer run, from 2020, sausage on the shelf has roughly kept pace with groceries as a whole.
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Brief, Pantry
Pasta prices: shelf, cost and outlook for 2026
A pound of spaghetti or macaroni averaged $1.37 in August 2026, up 6.2% on a year earlier. Since January 2020 the price index for rice, pasta and cornmeal has risen 24%, against 32% for all food at home, while what pasta makers charge rose 35%. Costs have run ahead of the shelf, and that gap is worth a look before your next pricing conversation.
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