WASHINGTON — The average price paid for white pan bread increased 4.4c per lb in March, its largest month-over-month increase since December 2014, according to the latest data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor. Meanwhile, the price of whole wheat bread also rose, climbing 2.8c per lb in the month.
The national average retail price of white pan bread was 130.9c, up 4.4c per lb from February but down 2c from March 2017. On a month-to-month basis, the average price for white pan bread in March decreased in all four regions —up 6.9c in the West, up 4.6c in the Northeast, up 4.2c in the Midwest and up 3.3c in the South.
At 203.9c per lb, the national average price for whole wheat bread was up 2.8c per lb from February and up 11c per lb from March 2017.
The national average price of family flour in March was 46.8c per lb, down 0.2c from February and down 6.3c from March 2017.
The national average price for spaghetti and macaroni in March was 118.7c per lb, up 1.1c from February but down 7.8c from March 2017. Chocolate chip cookies were 357.9c per lb, down 14.6c from February but up 23.3c from March 2017. The national average price of white long-grain rice was 68.2c per lb, down 0.9c from February and down 1c from March 2017.
