WASHINGTON — The average price paid for white pan bread rose 0.6c per lb in March, a month after gaining 2.3c, according to the latest data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor. The price of whole wheat bread, meanwhile, fell for the second straight month, easing 2.7c per lb after falling 0.4c per lb in February.
The national average retail price of white pan bread was 141c, according to the B.L.S. The March price for white pan bread increased 6c compared with March 2008. On a month-to-month basis, the average price for white pan bread rose in one region — up 3.5c in the South — and fell in two, easing 1.6c in the West and 1.3c in the Midwest. The average price was unchanged in the Northeast.
At 194.3c per lb, the national average price for whole wheat bread was up 7c per lb from March 2008.
The national average price of family flour in March was 50.3c per lb, down 0.6c from February but up 1.4c from March 2008.
The national average price for spaghetti and macaroni in March was 113.9c per lb, up 0.6c from February and up 6c from March 2008. Chocolate chip cookies were 305.6c per lb, up 2.1c from February and up 32.2c from March 2008.