WASHINGTON — The average price paid for white pan bread fell 2.8c per lb in June, according to the latest data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor. The decline comes on the heels of a gain of 1.8c in May. The price of whole wheat bread fell for the fifth straight month, easing 3.7c per lb after falling 2.9c per lb in May.
The national average retail price of white pan bread was 138.5c, according to the B.L.S. The June price for white pan bread increased 1.2c compared with June 2008. On a month-to-month basis, the average price for white pan bread rose in one region — up 1.1c in the Midwest — and fell in three, easing 6.3c in the South, 4.8c in the Northeast and 0.4c in the West.
At 184.8c per lb, the national average price for whole wheat bread was down 13.4c per lb from June 2008.
The national average price of family flour in June was 51.6c per lb, up 0.1c from May but down 1.3c from June 2008.
The national average price for spaghetti and macaroni in June was 117.8c per lb, up 0.4c from May and up 6.1c from June 2008. Chocolate chip cookies were 324.8c per lb, up 2.7c from May and up 37.3c from June 2008.