PHOENIX — As you're trying to plan out your meals in 2024, beware of the price of beef.
Consumer expert Julie Ramhold from DealNews.com says the rising cost is because of supply issues.
"Our cattle population is apparently the smallest it's been since 2015. We are also harvesting fewer animals for meat every year," Ramhold said. "So, the beef supply is kind of just in this shrinking situation, which means we're going to end up seeing higher prices on that."
Unfortunately, beef isn't the only meat we should plan to pay more for this year.
"We are expecting pork to increase in price in 2024 simply because California's Proposition 12 has gone into effect. It mandates that farmers have to provide more living space for certain animals, including pigs. That's going to mean rearranging a lot of things before they can be certified to sell pork again. So, this could impact the supply that's available," said Ramhold.
Now for the good news, Ramhold says both chicken and egg prices should be back to normal this year. Even better, sugar, coffee, and corn are expected to cost less this year.
"These crops have had some time to recover. So, supply is starting to get back to where we needed to be, which means they can lower those prices a little bit," added Ramhold.
Finally, it's time to start planning those trips because experts are predicting big drops for travel costs in 2024.
"We're expecting like 16% price drops on airfare. We're also expecting hotels to drop in price by roughly 9% and car rentals to be about 14% cheaper than last year," said Ramhold.
Some experts are predicting domestic travel is going to be cheaper overall, but some international destinations could also see price drops this year.