Want to teach your kids a quick lesson about how Democrats ruin the economy? On the morning Nov. 1, ask them how their trick-or-treating went this year.
Yes, it seems even the venerable act of begging for candy door-to-door in stuffy polyester costumes isn’t immune from Bidenflation. According to Fortune, candy prices were up 13 percent year-over-year in September, with the price of one popular candy bar up over 50 percent.
“Twix is up a whopping 53 percent, Skittles has jumped 41 percent and Reese’s has risen 35 percent over last year, according to retail analytics firm, Datasembly. Other names like Nestlé Crunch and Butterfinger are up a more modest 4 percent to 5 percent,” Fortune reported on Friday.
“Factors driving the surge in prices include logistics issues, energy costs and short supplies of some ingredients, said Datasembly Chief Executive Officer Ben Reich. Gouging might be at play but that’s harder to assess, he said.”
I guess this is good news for anyone who has extra Joe Biden “I Did That!” stickers. You don’t need to slap them on gas pumps anymore. Simply affix one with our president pointing to your candy bowl next to your front door on Oct. 31, and you’ll have the next generation voting GOP in no time.
While average household spending on Halloween has exploded in the past few decades, according to the National Retail Federation’s Halloween Spending Survey — going from $48.59 per household in 2005 to $102.743 in 2021 — 2022 marks the first significant decrease in household spending on the holiday since 2015.
This year, the National Retail Federation estimates, households will spend $100.45 — not a huge decrease, but consider that the crisp Benjamin the average household will be laying out for Oct. 31 festivities will purchase a lot less than it would have last year.
Halloween is, by far, the biggest season for candy-sellers, making up roughly $4.6 billion of the $36 billion in annual revenue the industry took in back in 2019, according to a 2020 article by CNBC. It’s so critical that Mars Wrigley, which makes Snickers, calls its head of U.S. sales “chief halloween officer” between July and Oct. 31.
Has inflation affected your household spending?
“It’s our Super Bowl,” said Christopher Gindlesperger, the National Confectioners Association’s senior vice president of public affairs. “It’s our World Cup moment.”
To that extent, then, the World Cup of cavities is looking a bit dire this year. And, wouldn’t’cha know it, Congress’ foremost old-coot lefty has found the problem: corporate greed!
While the cost of Halloween candy has surged more than 13.1% since last September, the Mars candy bar family became 44% richer during the pandemic increasing their wealth by $32.6 billion. The Mars family is now worth $106.8 billion.
Do you know what’s scary? Corporate greed.
— Bernie Sanders (@SenSanders) October 21, 2022
“While the cost of Halloween candy has surged more than 13.1% since last September, the Mars candy bar family became 44% richer during the pandemic increasing their wealth by $32.6 billion. The Mars family is now worth $106.8 billion,” tweeted Bernie Sanders, independent Vermont senator and America’s most famous Waldorf impersonator.
“Do you know what’s scary? Corporate greed.”
This cherry-picked, context-free statistic is undermined by (as usual, when Sanders is involved) the facts, given that food prices have been skyrocketing across the board.
As Axios noted, food prices spiked 13 percent in September of 2022 as compared to September 2021. Hardest hit were cereals and bakery products (16.2 percent increase) and dairy products (15.9 percent increase).
Fruits and vegetables were up by 10.4 percent, and meats, poultry, fish and eggs were up by 9 percent.
A survey revealed that, thanks to the high prices, people were purchasing less food: “Nearly a quarter of those surveyed by Morning Consult in September said they’re often buying fewer items at the grocery store, in order to save money, up from 15 percent in October 2021,” Axios reported.
“That is particularly worrying for low-income shoppers. The percentage of shoppers who worried their food will run out before they have money to buy more increased to 42 percent from 35 percent.”
Sure, Little Johnny having 53 percent fewer Twix bars in his candy haul is mildly amusing. Little Johnny going back to a home where mom and/or dad is worrying about running out of food isn’t, however.
Furthermore, corporate greed by a handful of plutocrats isn’t a proper explanation for a 13 percent year-over-year jump in food prices, particularly when it neatly mirrors the 13.1 percent increase in candy costs. Pursuing inflationary policies on a national scale is, however.
To that extent, the Biden administration and the Democrat congresspeople who enable it bear the responsibility for every half-empty candy bag — and every half-empty pantry kids come home to, as well. Let’s hope that, on this All Hallow’s Eve, America’s future voters learn an important lesson about empowering the fiscally incontinent at the ballot box.
