Many Georgia families are buying less meat, seafood and dairy as grocery costs rise, according to a survey paid for by financial media company MarketBeat. Families reported serving smaller portions, choosing sale items and making more meals with no meat or fish.

What the survey found: MarketBeat said 69% of households lowered the amount or type of meat, seafood or dairy they bought during the past 12 months. The company estimates that equals about 2.8 million Georgia households, but that figure is an estimate, not a count of surveyed homes.

Beef takes the biggest cut: Among those surveyed, 43% named beef as the main animal food they reduced. Fish or seafood followed at 10%, while 8% named chicken or turkey, 8% named pork and 7% named dairy. About 47% said they had replaced beef with foods such as beans or lentils because of higher prices.

Changes at the table: About 51% said they now serve a meal without meat or fish at least twice a week to save money. Another 16% do so once a week, while 22% said they never made that change for financial reasons.

The survey also found that 58% had eaten a smaller serving or skipped a protein-rich food so a child or another household member could have more.

Cheaper choices: Eggs were the most common lower-cost replacement, named by 24% of respondents. Processed meats followed at 13%, with beans at 12% and canned fish at 9%. Another 24% said they did not have a regular backup choice.

Among parents, 70% said weekly discounts now guide which meat or other protein food they buy. About 67% of all respondents said meat, seafood and dairy now feel more like luxury items than basic groceries.

Add The Georgia Sun as a
preferred source on Google
Publisher at  – btclark@thegeorgiasun.com – Web

B.T. Clark is the Publisher of The Georgia Sun and author of Principles Are Like Pants… You Ought to Have Some. Over two decades in journalism, he has served as Managing Editor of Neighbor Newspapers in metro Atlanta and Digital Director at Times-Journal Inc., earning multiple awards along the way. His work has appeared in newspapers across the state, including The Cherokee Tribune and The Marietta Daily Journal.

Trending Now ↻ 2m ago
  1. Gwinnett deli fails health inspection after insects were found in food
  2. Lawrenceville Italian restaurant scores 54 on health inspection
  3. Has Richard Woods done enough to improve Georgia’s schools?
  4. Georgia heat index may hit 112 today
  5. Police search for hit-and-run driver who injured a pedestrian in Gwinnett