The latest trend on TikTok? Inflation.
TikTok user @sewerlidd claims that their grocery haul price quadrupled in the past two years. In the video, the user compares their Walmart grocery bill in 2022 to how much the same order would cost today, and the reveal is shocking. The order is enough groceries for one person for one month. In 2022, the order cost $126, but now it would cost a whopping $414, nearly four times the price of their original order.
But prices shown in the video can't be verified. The two receipts the users shows do not match, calling into question their validity.
The TikTok received over 850,000 views and nearly 175,000 likes, with the comments flooded with other users' experiences with pricey groceries. Since publishing, the video has been picked up as a conservative talking point.
The Consumer Price Index (CPI), which tracks inflation, rose 6.4 percent in 2022 and 3.1 percent in 2023, and inflation-adjusted hourly earnings have not kept up with the jump. In 2022, the CPI for food increased "faster than in any year since 1979" by 9.9 percent, with food-at-home prices rising by 11.4 percent. Growth slowed in 2023, with a 5.8 percent increase overall and food-at-home prices increasing 5 percent.
Inflation is at the top of some voters' minds ahead of the first presidential debate between President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump on Thursday night.
UPDATE: Jun. 27, 2024, 4:04 p.m. EDT This story has been updated to include online conversations about the validity of the video.
Topics TikTok Viral Videos Money
