WASHINGTON — The average price paid for white pan bread increased in March while the price for whole wheat bread decreased, according to the latest data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor.
The national average retail price of white pan bread was 141.2c, up 0.1c per lb from February and up 1.7c from March 2012. The increase followed a decrease of 1.1c per lb in February. On a month-to-month basis, the average price for white pan bread in March rose in two regions — up 2.6c in the South and up 2.1c in the Northeast — and fell in two regions — down 4.5c in the West and down 1.6c in the Midwest.
At 202.4c per lb, the national average price for whole wheat bread was down 0.1c per lb from February and down 3.2c per lb from March 2012.
The national average price of family flour in March was 49.9c per lb, down 2.5c from February and down 2c from March 2012.
The national average price for spaghetti and macaroni in March was 132.3c per lb, down 2.5c from February but up 5.2c from March 2012. Chocolate chip cookies were 377.4c per lb, up 14.9c from February and up 29.1c from March 2012. The national average price of white long-grain rice was 71.4c per lb, up 0.6c from February and up 1.4c from March 2012.
