Food Prices, Discount Stores and Private Labels : Analyses and Trends

Food prices vary across different parts of the United States. One factor that may lead to differences in food prices is the types of stores in a given market or neighborhood. Nontraditional discount retailers, including supercenters, mass merchandisers, wholesale club stores, and dollar stores, have gained a substantial portion of the retail food market over the past 15 years. Previous studies have shown that prices for some items are lower in nontraditional than in traditional stores. But those earlier studies were generally limited in the number of items compared, the detail level of comparison, and the geographic areas studied. This book compares prices for a wide range of foods at a finer level of detail than earlier studies, at both the national and geographic market levels, in order to quantify the difference in food prices across store formats. Also discussed is the relationship between private label and national brand product prices and in-store promotions.