Elena Perova | Istock | Getty Images High inflation is subsiding, but many Americans have yet to see relief from elevated prices at the grocery store . "Grocery prices skyrocketed during the pandemic, and in many cases, they've kept going up, even though the pandemic is over," Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass.
, said at a Wednesday Senate hearing . Shoppers may be infuriated to find certain grocery products — like a pound of chicken breasts or a loaf of bread — go up from one week to the next, Warren said. And they may be frustrated to find other products — like a box of cereal or a package of spaghetti — come with fewer servings for the same price, she said.
That trend is known as shrinkflation . More from Personal Finance: This retirement account can be 'triple-tax efficient' for teens this summer College pays, but outcomes for workers without a degree are improving Lawmakers debate whether child savings accounts can reduce wealth inequality Lawmakers are divided on what has prompted those elevated prices. "Grocery prices are up because of good old-fashioned corporate price gouging," Warren said.
"And they can gouge consumers on prices because there's only a small number of companies controlling every level of the food chain." Sen. John Kennedy, R-La.
, blamed government spending under President Joe Biden. "When you spend this kind of money, you're going to have inflation," Kennedy said. A recent Harris poll finds almost 3 in 5 Americans think the country is in an econom.
