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Thanksgiving dinner costs down in 2016

By Zack Bernard, IPB News | Published on in Agriculture

While prices of the average Thanksgiving dinner went up last year, that won’t be a problem for consumers in 2016.

The Indiana Farm Bureau’s annual survey projects the average Thanksgiving meal will cost just under $47, which is $3.52 less than last year’s total.

Much of that is due to a significant drop in turkey prices. In 2015, a standard 16 pound turkey cost just over $25, the highest it had been since 2012. This year, that turkey will cost $22.56 — a ten percent decrease from last year.

Turkey prices were higher last year due to an avian flu outbreak, which resulted in the euthanization of hundreds of thousands turkeys around the Midwest.

The survey was conducted with 16 volunteer “shoppers” who go to grocery stores and take note of the prices of each item.