PENNSYLVANIA — From parents stretching grocery budgets to food businesses struggling with rising ingredient costs, Pennsylvanians are feeling the pressure of feeding themselves and their families as the cost of everyday essentials continues to climb.

On October 20, Affordable Pennsylvania brought together Pennsylvania residents, a community revitalization leader, a coffee business owner, and a nutrition educator for a virtual roundtable on the rising cost of food. Participants shared firsthand accounts of how higher prices are changing the way families shop, cook and make ends meet.

See the recording here.

"I don't understand how the quality of food is going down, but the prices are going up,” said Aidalis, a stay-at-home mom and volunteer in Bethlehem. “I not only have to budget my meals, but I also have to make sure the meals that I'm budgeting and purchasing are not going to make my family sick.”

"Our core product of green coffee had tariffs placed on it. That was a big, immediate shock which we had no choice but to pass on to the consumer,” said Peter, a coffee shop owner in Harrisburg. “We weathered the egg prices going up, and there’s only so much you can charge for an egg sandwich. There was a mix of us having to eat costs, but also having to pass some on to the consumer."

"The process of sitting down and making sure that my budget is going to fit what I need, having a list, and sticking to that list has become much more time-consuming and much more important when planning a shopping trip,” said Katie, a stay-at-home mom & caregiver from the Newton Ransom area Three or four years ago I didn't have to do that as much as I do now. It just adds to the stress so many families on fixed incomes face. And adds to the unpaid labor many family care givers face."

The conversation highlighted how grocery costs compound other financial pressures, including housing, utilities, gas and health care. For families already living on tight budgets, rising food costs can mean making difficult trade-offs, finding creative ways to stretch meals and relying on community resources to help put food on the table. And for some, they face the benefits cliff - working full time, making too much to qualify for help, but not making enough to truly sustain their families.

Affordable Pennsylvania is working to bring these real-life experiences into the public conversation and show how federal policy decisions, such as the 2025 federal tax law, tariffs  and the war in Iran have affected the cost of food for people across the Commonwealth.

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Affordable Pennsylvania is a Pennsylvania organization focused on holding elected leaders accountable for the decisions they make and their impact on working families. We make sure Pennsylvanians have the facts about how federal policies and votes affect the cost of everyday life, including groceries, health care, child care, utilities and transportation.