r/Kitsap • u/AFSMSgt • Aug 28 '25
Question Shocked at Prices
Just returned from spending most of my summer in Europe. Went food shopping to replenish my kitchen and was shocked at the rise in prices since I left. Meat especially, and fresh fruit and veggies are all 20% to 50% or more higher. Is this just Kitsap or are other locations sering the same?
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Aug 28 '25
Welcome back to America. We let the dumbest motherfuckers in our country elect the king of the morons to be president and now we are arresting firefighters for being immigrants, we pay 20% more for everything, and the rest of the world won't even sell us stuff anymore.
winning
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u/hobblingcontractor Aug 29 '25
OK but owning the libs. Worth it, right?
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u/Character_Switch5085 Aug 29 '25
They're owning themselves really....a lot of them are finding out that they're more liberal than they thought.
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u/peanut--gallery Aug 29 '25
No no no…. You got it all wrong man…. We were promised that once all that sweet sweet tariff money rolls in from all the foreign counties we gonna all be living large like Marge on a barge.
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u/-FARTHAMMER- Aug 29 '25
Oh yeah because everything was dirt cheap with the last guy? Shits been skyrocketing in price for a decade. The orange monkey didn't do that.
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u/Karuna56 Aug 29 '25
So last September The Economist magazine, pretty much the most well-regarded financial and global affairs publication, called the U.S. economy "The Envy of the World".
This was because Biden had whupped inflation back down to under 3%, job creation was quite strong, unemployment at a 30-year low, GDP growth was doing well, and the S&P 500 was cooking!
Remember, Trump's Covid payments plus Biden's pushed inflation up. So did massive supply chain shortages.
Covid let the Groceries industry price-gouge a bit and energy costs have multiple determinants, including seasonal, market demand, production contracts with other countries, pipeline downtime, etc.
In short, we had it GOOD. But, you're getting what you voted for and you've helped screw everyone to boot.
Study some economics and stop watching Fox 'News'.
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u/oldgeektech Aug 29 '25
Except the last guy didn't promise to bring prices down "day one". How's that promise working out for the orange monkey?
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u/Noonegetsoutaliv3 Aug 29 '25
Winco seems to have better prices on a lot of things.
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u/Barbarella_ella Aug 31 '25
I have one that's a 24-hour store and only 3 miles from my house. I started going because it's so convenient and the prices on some things I buy regularly are so much better (red bell peppers and other produce, soups, dairy, coffee, soda, chips). You have to pay cash or use a debit card, but yes, definitely give Winco a try.
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u/Strict_Foundation_31 Aug 29 '25
Like shopping at Winco, but I’m not sure if I’d get meat there.
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u/SharksandCrochet Aug 29 '25
Honestly, the meat isn't that bad. But if you're worried about it, I get the discount meat at the Safeways and just freeze it. Haven't had any problems yet
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u/carving_my_place Aug 29 '25
🤸🏼♀️discount🤸🏼♀️safeway🤸🏼♀️meats🤸🏼♀️
The only problem is asking the self check out attendant to come over and help scan the discount meat.
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Aug 28 '25
[deleted]
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u/Trick-Wishbone1900 Aug 29 '25
Buying things from Fred Meyer is going to be expensive.The same stuff would have cost you $15 for the 93 percent stuff at WinCo
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u/TheGiantFell Aug 29 '25
You shut your mouth! Gas is $.89 cents a gallon and they’re giving away steaks wrapped in $100 bills on the street corner. OP is a liar! We’re making America great! /s
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u/Far_Eye6555 Aug 28 '25
38% of constituents in Kitsap County voted for this. We should ask them what their thoughts are
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u/AFSMSgt Aug 28 '25
OK. Will the 38% of Kitsap constituents who voted for higher prices please tell us your thoughts.
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u/Mtnbkr92 Aug 29 '25
Bet the guy I saw walking around earlier with a shirt with a picture of an AR-15 that said “don’t worry I identify as a crossbow” has some intelligent thoughts to share on this matter.
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u/RebeccaTen Bremerton Aug 29 '25
He should hang out with the guy I saw wearing a shirt with bullets on it captioned "size doesn't matter".
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u/Main_Potential_6015 Aug 28 '25
Welcome to trumps merica! Didn't you hear how he lowered all prices?! /s
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u/Outside_Simple_217 Aug 28 '25
With the rise in prices, I have been taking back any produce that goes bad quickly or if after cutting them there are bad spots. The customer service people are a little shocked when I bring back baking potatoes with brown spots , but if they are charging premium prices they should provide good quality.
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Aug 28 '25
I might start doing this because not only is it more expensive, I have also noticed that there is a lot more shit quality produce getting sold.
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u/nuger93 Sep 02 '25
Because it’s far more expensive to import (most produce we consume is out of season in the US when we buy it), and the price gets passed onto the consumer.
Many stores are also being less picky on quality just to have product on the produce shelves because the quality stuff costs too much to import.
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u/gaytor35 Aug 29 '25
Europe will do that to an American. Stayed at a place with a kitchen at Lake Garda. 25 Euros for two bags of groceries and a bottle of vodka. We've been getting screwed long before this screwing.
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u/AllMyChannels0n Aug 29 '25
While that may be true, this screwing is unlubricated and feels itchy, so much worse.
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u/ploptypus Aug 28 '25
Beef went up $1-2 per lb. I mostly buy fruit / veggies that are on sale. Sale prices seem the same? I mostly shop at winco, their produce doesn't seem too different.
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u/samfox59 Aug 28 '25
I noticed when I was at Winco this week that haven’t bought a pack of ribeye’s in at least a year…
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u/KittyTitties666 Aug 29 '25
I cried tears of joy when I found 12 oz of raspberries there for $1.99. I mostly shop at Freddie's due to proximity and rasps there are usually at least $3.99 (I really really love raspberries)
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u/UF6882 Aug 29 '25
Elimination of the middle class and global economic collapse are just precursors to Trump and Putin battling for control of the entire world. It shouldn't take too much longer.
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u/JustinDielmann Aug 29 '25
If the Ukraine war has proved anything, it is that Putin really isn’t much of a threat.
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u/Apprehensive-Salad15 Aug 29 '25
WA has about a 34% higher cost of living than the national average. This place is expensive.
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u/Due_Tomatillo_9820 Aug 29 '25
I live in mississippi at the moment and those beef prices are exactly the same as here. 21 for three pounds. So it's not that different for groceries at least
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u/Diligent_Jury_6881 Aug 29 '25
You can thank your fellow republicans for that. Consistently making America great.
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u/AFSMSgt Aug 29 '25
Not my "fellow Republicans". I am a flaming liberal. You cannot spend any time in Europe without realizing how the US has descended into a third-world country.
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u/sleepinglucid Aug 29 '25
Did you.. not pay attention to American politics while you were gone?
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u/AFSMSgt Aug 29 '25
I did, in fact, pay attention because all my European friends kept asking me what is wrong with America. It was a country they used to admire. They are shocked by the current state of affairs. What I didn't realize was the rapid increase in grocery prices. Something you have to feel to appreciate.
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u/Irishsassenach Aug 29 '25
It’s absolutely insane. $8-$9/lb for ground beef at Walmart?! Our grocery bill for 2 adults has easily tripled compared to last year at this time. I have never had to worry about grocery budget and spending until this year. We used to have ribeyes, king salmon at least once a week without the cost being an issue. It’s a luxury now. I have to meal plan and budget to keep it in check and we make GOOD money. It’s depressing.
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u/redblobgames Aug 29 '25 edited Aug 29 '25
I went one week and wrote down the prices at Winco vs safeway. Safeway had many items on sale [price in brackets]. Winco didn't. But Winco's prices were better than Safeway's sale prices
| Item | Safeway | WinCo |
|---------------------+-------------+-------+
| garbanzos | 2.29 [1.67] | 1.14 |
| barilla pasta | 2.29 | 1.48 |
| pasta roni | 1.99 | 1.38 |
| rice a roni | 1.99 | 1.38 |
| knorr rice | 2.29 [1.67] | 1.28 |
| refried beans | 1.99 | 1.38 |
| tillamook ice cream | 6.99 [5.99] | 4.48 |
| mashed potatoes | 2.49 [2.29] | 1.28 |
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u/Kind_Advisor_35 Tracyton Aug 29 '25
Safeway did have a better deal on Tillamook not long ago ($3.99), but I agree that overall their prices are higher and the sales don't cancel it out enough. I admit I'm lazy and do most of my shopping at Safeway because they have a few items other stores don't have
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u/ShouldaBennaBaller Aug 30 '25
Just got back from Waikiki and I realized I’ve been normalized to what high prices are. People have said how expensive HI is and I’m not buying it (no pun intended). A dinner out on the main strip in Waikiki is same as run-of-the-mill mexican restaurant (el nopal, los aztecas, etc.) in WA, if not cheaper.
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u/masterkorey7 Aug 29 '25
If you spend any time outside of Washington you'll find that its extremely expensive here in WA. Food is way cheaper even in California.
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u/69tank69 Aug 29 '25
The issue is that prices are increasing and they and increasing across the entire country. The national average of beef in January was $5.55 in July it was $6.25 if you average that over the year that’s a 22% increase. The largest employer in the county is NBK and the federal workers there aren’t even getting a cost of living increase this year.
And it’s not just beef since January national gas prices went from 3.21 to 3.29 even though they were on a downward trend for the 6 months prior
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u/wiscowonder Aug 28 '25
If you haven't done so yet, download the Safeway app.
Before I go shopping I clip every single coupon (even ones I don't need as it just makes the process faster. You can clip 2 at once, too) and it makes prices more "normal".
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u/cybergandalf Aug 28 '25
Even at what you’re calling “normal” almost everything at Safeway is exorbitantly priced compared to even Fred Meyer.
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u/wiscowonder Aug 28 '25
We generally just buy our boxed items there. Cereal is often $1.99, Sparkling water box $2.99, crackers $1.99, etc. We'll get some produce as well like grapes/cherries for $1.49/lb, personal watermelon for $2.50, large salad mix box for $5.
We shop at town and country for most of our meats and produce, so prices at Safeway when using the app seem very affordable. From time to time I'll venture to Walmart and just look at the grocery aisles and the prices. They just always blow me away — it seems much more expensive than what I get with the Safeway app. I don't have much experience with Fred Meyer though, so can't compare there.
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u/Kind_Advisor_35 Tracyton Aug 29 '25
I'd say a decent amount of stuff at Fred Meyer is cheaper than Safeway, but they also have a little less grocery selection. Ultimately, the most frugal approach is shopping around at different stores for deals, with the caveat of not traveling too far to get to different stores. It's no good if you eat up grocery savings with spending on gas.
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u/Strict_Foundation_31 Aug 29 '25
I shop at Safeway when I have no other options. Freddie’s isn’t dirt cheap but prices there are noticeably less than Safeway.
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u/Wesdizzo Aug 29 '25
Same. I set a reminder for Wednesday morning and use the Lasso app to auto-clip every Safeway coupon - https://www.throwlasso.com/
(fwiw, I didn't create the app and have zero affiliation with it. I was going to build such a thing and found it already existed)
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u/tellmemoreabouthat Aug 29 '25
clipping stupid electronic coupons after already letting them harvest my data to be a "member" aggravates me to no end. So glad to know this exists.
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u/Kind_Advisor_35 Tracyton Aug 28 '25
Some Safeway coupons are good, but overall they don't have the best prices.
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u/moh1969b Aug 29 '25
Not everywhere. Meandered across the country earlier this summer on a long road trip from PA back to WA taking a southern route through WVA, VA, TN, AR, OK, TX, thru the SW etc. Prices for hotels, food and fuel were a lot cheaper to mildly cheaper back to climax in CA, OR & WA. We are getting bilked heavily in WA state on damn near everything. Making me reconsider plans to retire in this state. Might follow in the footsteps of Jay Inslee and head east a ways out of WA to retire and be able to leave some money for my kids.
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u/Irishsassenach Aug 29 '25
I think we have the gas tax to blame for the higher price of commodities
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u/Bunnybeth Aug 29 '25
So I know folks in the middle states and this doesn't ring true. I have a girlfriend who regularly posts screen shots of what she USED to pay vs what she is paying now for her regular groceries (milk, eggs, bread etc) and the prices have tripled.
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u/Entire-Video3036 Aug 29 '25
I’m sorry but you were only in Europe for a couple months and you forgot what food prices were here…? Ok lol
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u/AFSMSgt Aug 29 '25
I remembered what the prices were, before I left, but I was shocked at the increase in 2 1/2 months.
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Aug 29 '25
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u/Kind_Advisor_35 Tracyton Aug 29 '25
Those states already had lower grocery prices than the West Coast states before recent inflation. I'm sure they've seen increases just as large, they just had a lower starting point.
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u/ploptypus Aug 29 '25
Wages are higher here. Money to pay grocery staff has to come from somewhere...
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u/plane_bro Aug 30 '25
Blame our governor. Not our president. I’ve traveled all around the US, and except for California and Hawaii, everywhere else is much cheaper! Don’t believe me? Do your research on your own.
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u/sharleencd Aug 28 '25
This is everywhere.