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quart of milk $1.15

iceberg lettuce $1.49

beer $5.29

milk 1.39
iceberg 1.99
beer 6.99

address 88th & Lexington zip: 10128

Yeah, I am not sure where to post my results either!

These are prices from Appletree Market, on Amsterdam Avenue between W. 120th and W. 121st Street.

Quart of Whole Milk: $1.25
Head of Iceberg Lettuce: $1.49
6 pack of Budweiser, 12 oz bottles: $6.39

Price of:
1 qt of Milk - $1.09
1 head of iceberg lettuce: $1.89
1 six pack of Budweiser: $9/49
Location: Fairways at Redhood
Description: Up scale supermarket

I couldn't find the location where we are supposed to post this information. Can anyone let me know? Thanks.

The price of beer is something that I have noticed vary widely between neighbourhoods. It would be really interesting to compare a domestic vs imported brand.

Lentils
Peanut Butter
Milk
Toilet Paper
Yogurt
Coffee

Breyer's ice cream.
Cadbury chocolate bar.

During the broadcast, Brian seemed quite dismissive of the idea of pricing beer, but I'm constantly surprised by how much it fluxuates between neighborhoods.

Folks should buy a pint of Stella or bottle of Heineken at the pub / club nearest to their front door, or 6-pack at nearest store.

Like the milk and cereal ideas.
I buy lots of fresh fruit, but can't remember if I've ever purchased broccoli.

JUNK FOOD:
It would be very interesting to include something like Wise potato chips or a national brand of chocolate chip cookies, which may be priced differently depending upon neighborhood.

(I don't know if the manufacturers control pricing, though. If so, it's a bad idea)

Sort of the opposite of organic prices perhaps?

Spaghetti, dozen eggs(extra large), Hershey's milk chocolate kisses

Perhaps include one or more questions about where folks are buying whatever items you decide to list. #49 and #51 allude to this. Kwik-E-Mart? Grocery store? Fresh Direct? Also, is the store within walking / bicycle distance? Or on the route to / from work? Is motor transport required? A few weeks ago, you did a segment with the owner of Gristedes about how some neighborhoods are "over-banked" and others lack food stores. This isn't new nor is the cause entirely the obvious demographic issue. Consider how far folks living on Fifth Av in Manhattan or facing Grand Army Plaza in Bkln have to walk to get to a grocery store. Of course, historically, the folks who rent/own these apts aren't the ones doing the walking.

Bounty plain white paper towels

Philadelphia cream cheese

bananas or celery

As a nutrionist with the NYC Office of Food Programs and Policy Coordination in the 90s, my job was just what you are proposing to do. Every month, we went to 6-8 low-income neighborhoods with a list of foods to price, including:

Eggs, Kellogg's Rice Krispies, Cream of Wheat, Red Cheek Apple Juic, Skippy PB, 1% milk, Goya dried beans
Carolina rice, Red Delicious apples.

Results were striking--how different prices were not only between neighborhoods but within them.

Go with frozen broccoli in a standard size (10oz?) bag. Then you don't have the by-the-bunch concerns w/ pricing. And honestly, I think it's the way a lot of people buy vegetables (fresh ones tend to rot in my fridge and they are also expensive).

I'm recently relocated to Ohio but I can't wait to see how our prices here stack up against NYC!

yogurt - dannon
avocado
quaker oats - 32 oz container

pls specify if we should consider items on sale and, fruit/producer street vendors in the cost comparison

Butter and Olive Oil

I agree with Milk as a standard "fluctuating" item.

I'm not sure Corn Flakes is a critical component, but I'll accept it as a "standard" dry goods product that can be different from one neighborhood to another. I would ask that the rules pertaining to Corn Flakes are that the weight (ounces) is specified and that COUPONS don't count. We're talking Corn Flakes to Corn Flakes here.

Broccoli, in my opinion, ought to be replaced by CORN. There has been a dialogue about the price of corn being affected by the use of ethanol, and by the use of corn as a natural resource in general.

So my vote:

- MILK (specify size, brand or farm, and non-organic types only for standardization purposes)
- KELLOGG'S CORN FLAKES (specify box size & note that coupons don't count)
- CORN (fresh, non-organic, on the cob)

Thanks for conducting this!

Though I got on the air with ice cream, ground beef and chicken, I think also useful:

toothpaste (pick a brand name, size, and flavor)

Morningstar Farms Grillers Original Veggie Burgers (in frozen section)

Kleenex tissues, Ultra Soft-Doux, 85 tissues in those square boxes, no multi-packs, just per single box

Diapers (pick a name brand, size, and number in the package)

Milk is a great choice, but not as a control. About 6 weeks ago, in Midwood, Brooklyn, a gallon of 1% milk was $3.87 at a local fruit-and-vegetable store. Here in Port Washington, at a Stop-and-Shop supermarket, it was $4.99. At a more locally-based supermarket (North Shore Farms), it was $4.29.

Part of the issue raised by this and the on-air listener call-in comments is the contrast between big-name supermarkets and produce stores. Although the supermarkets would seem to have more clout in buying power leading to leveraged/lower prices, they tend to act as if they've got a captive market. Here in the 'burbs, that is sometimes the reality--people are not likely to want to drive very far just for a cheap gallon of milk, if they anyway have to buy meat, eggs, etc. In my experience, this is in contrast to neighborhoods like Flushing-Main St. in Queens, and Midwood, Brighton Beach, etc. in Brooklyn, where the mom-and-pop stores certainly mark down produce and not infrequently mark down other products--perhaps because of classic capitalist competition, because where there's one produce store, there tends to be many. Bottom line: please consider including this variable when you open the portal for price quotes and when you plot the maps.

And thanks for doing this crowd-sourcing project! Hope you're getting grant money to finance it...

Yes, by all means check the broccoli; be careful, though, since some broccoli is sold with the entire stem, and others just the "crown," so you'd need to be consistent.

How about Idaho potatoes? Either in the 5 lb. bag, or loose. For those of us who can't eat 5 lb. before they start to bud into potato plants, the loose potatoes, which sell for more per pound than the ones in the bag, seem to vary widely.

Pick a brand of peanut butter, say Smucker's All-Natural, too.

I'd forget the carbonated beverages! Anyone who wants to reduce their grocery bill would do well to switch to tap water, and improve their health at the same time. (A little editorial here...)

I think the list should include things that almost anyone would buy, and which would be part of a pretty healthy diet.

all organic: milk, eggs, vegetables, cheese, meats for those who eat them. I buy straigh from teh farmer

I support the suggestion to survey an organic item. I suggest milk, since I have seen it vary between 3.49 and 5.19! The most common brand name is Horizon.

Actually, there is huge variation in price of milk from one store to another in the SAME neighborhood. Apparently it is not longer regulated. For example, 1 qt 4% milk is $1.59 at Associated @ 97th St & Amsterdam but only $1.29 at Gourmet Garage at 96th & Bwy. At Barzini's it's 99¢. I stopped shopping at Gristedes so I cannot say what it is now. At Duane Reade it's even more but I consider this a convenience store so it's not strictly comparable.

Canned boneless, skinless salmon - it's much cheaper than fresh and so an inexpensive, healthy food - choosing it would also raise awareness of it as a healthier alternative to canned tuna ("nutritious food" is not one of your criteria, but why not do something socially useful as well?)

Why is everyone forgetting pet food?
I have found that the prices don't even vary, they are absolutely and outrageously of the chart to be even comparable from neighborhood to neighborhood.

Martinson coffee often goes on sale at Shop Rite in NJ for 3 cans for $5, but in Ridgewood it runs $4.99 a can.

canned brand named coffee

a pound of butter

a dozen large eggs

I haven't read through all the comments, so apologies if someone already said it, but the problem with ground meat pricing (and maybe even produce pricing) is that the QUALITY of the meat and produce is often staggeringly divergent. So you're not really paying for the same product.

The other thing I would say is that it might also be important to look at unpackaged foods that people should be eating because it says a lot about the general availability of healthy food from neighborhood to neighborhood as it relates to wealth.

that ofcourse might be a little more than you're looking to do.

3 foods:
Eggs
Yogurt
Orange Juice

When you Shop at the Park Slope Food Coop, you don't have to think about paying more than what is a fair price.
If you compare prices for Organic Food products at Whole Foods versus Trader Joe's or Walmart you will find the pricing to be out of whack.
Any food labeled Organic seems to be able to get away with higher pricing and people seem to be willing to just accept like sheep.
Compare Organic produce at a few major stores Yukon Gold Potatoes, Organic Plum Tomatoes and Fresh Mozzarella Cheese.

Poland Spring (clear bottle)

Toilet tissue

Land o Lakes butter

Tropicana grovestand (high pulp)

Lean Cuisine microwave dinner (serves one)

Uncle Ben's single serve box of rice

Lucky Charms cereal or some other sweetened cereal, like Captain Crunch (who eats Corn Flakes?!)

How about local products--bread, produce, eggs from New York and New Jersey?

white button mushrooms

plantains

non organic baby carrots

One thing to watch out for in this experiment is the quality of the food. For the milk, how close to expiration is it? For the broccoli, does it look fresh or not? Processed food has a somewhat standard quality, but fresh food varies tremendously, and that affects the price. And the worse-quality food found in poor neighborhoods often costs more. Perhaps folks could report on the price *and* the quality?

Although there are lots of vegetarians, I say the choice of ground beef is a great one. There are hardly ever differences in brand, and meat tends to be the most expensive item on the grocery list for families.

Also, broccoli is a good choice (need the fresh produce element) and boxed cereal is too (but be sure to designate the oz size - small in order to capture the small stores).

So, my picks - 1 lb ground beef 20% lean; 1 lb broccoli, and 1 20 oz (?) box of Kelloggs Corn Flakes.

You should have at least one organic item as a test to see how available organic foods are.

Please, you're making me hungry and it's not even lunch time!

What if I order most of my groceries from Fresh Direct? Do you want to include Fresh Direct in the survey?

Make sure you note size once of box, and quart or 1/2 quart of milk.
What about for another project: How many police privet cars park on a fire plug over night?

store's proximity to subways is a factor...

ground coffee

Campbell's soup

lb. of butter

not a grocery store item, but the price of a slice of pizza waries a lot by neighborhood and i think its really telling

How about a 6 oz can of Bumblebee Tuna, chunk styl and a quart of Mazola Corn Oil. These are products everyone, single, married, families are likely to buy.

There are some great ideas... why limit it to 3? If your listeners are going to go to stores with pad and paper, why not 5 or 6?

A 5 pound bag of sugar, any brand

Cheese by the pound, like American or Cheddar.

IT's well known that snow peas cost 99c / pound in Chinatown--and ALWAYS 3.99/pound everywhere else.

Also, if I were Gristedes, Kellogg's Corn Flakes would go on sale next week. . .

Bottled water is the best pricer. I have used it as a price gauge.
Example 1 liter bottle can be had for 1.25 in Chinatown.
same bottle over by central Park west near lincoln center $3.

If your Shlitz isnt 50 cents a can, you are getting ripped off!

How about ethnic foods? It would be interesting if ethnic foods are more expensive or less expensive the closer they are to an ethnic center in nyc. sushi in soho, etc.

1 dozen large eggs
28 oz. can of tomatoes
bananas

I think a more interesting comparison would be how a business like Starbucks charges for a regular tall cup of coffee in different neighborhoods in Manhattan. This example can be applied to how grocery branches like Food Emporium charges a single product in its various stores in Manhattan.

Green Mountain Salsa at Gristedies in Brooklyn Heights is $9.99, at the deli across the street from me is $2.95!!!

toilet paper!

Spaghetti
28 oz. can plumb tomatoes
one bastone bread (baguette)

i vote for milk!

i suggest (frozen) veggie burger, not a lot of stores even carry this.

another suggestion cheddar cheese (or some other kind of cheese).

Broccoli is often sold in bunches (at my local store) not by the pound. How about Bananas, or String beans (not fancy french ones, just regular ones). Plain old Tropicana oj would also be good.
MILK: do you mean a brand or a store brand/generic? They often vary greatly in price.

What about EGGS? regular, jumbo (or something) dozen eggs? Non-organic etc.

I think that the gallon of milk, a half gallon of Tropicana Pure Premium Orange Juice and a pre-determined size box of Kellogg's Corn Flakes are all good choices.

pasta sauce - regular style

Asparagus, 3.99lb or up, Astoria, 1.99lb and lower
Kraft Cheese sticks, 4.79, Astoria, on sale, 2 for 4bucks, Salmon steaks 7.99 or up, Astoria 4.99lb

I think the price of a dozen large eggs would be a useful and interesting comparison.

blueberries
yogurt
walnuts

I think you should include some kind of meat. Maybe chicken breasts or hamburger. I know there are a lot of brands but maybe people could look for the meat packed by the grocery store they are shopping in like Gristede's or Food Emporium, etc.

I like the idea of Cornflakes and a vegetable like broccoli.

I would also be interested in knowing if some listeners have trouble finding fresh vegetables in their local grocery. In some neighborhoods, it is not so easy. Maybe that's a different crowd sourcing project...

The problem with some items like orange juice is that some items, like orange juice and soda, rotate on and off sale on a bi-weekly basis, giving to wild fluctuations that are not due to demand or market location.

Not necessarily constructive, but a problem with broccoli as a measure is that many places sell it by "the bunch" and the bunch varies is weight.

i know u are talking about supermarkets but....

have you heard of the big mac index http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_mac_index

i wonder what the price of big macs in a neighborhood says about our city.

how about a kid theme?

milk, baby carrots, kraft macaroni and cheese

I second the person who said: beer. I've always used a six pack of a national brand of beer as an informal sort of price index of a neighborhood. And including something which is a "vice" rather than a nutritious staple might make a nice point of comparison.

Definitely milk and eggs. I would avoid cereal because stores frequently run buy-one-get-one or 2 for $4 specials. Stick to things that aren't normally subject to promotional mark-downs.

Flour's good (although some of us aren't buying it anymore), or a you could look at a head of iceberg lettuce, a can of pinto beans or a pound of hamburger.

I love the conflakes idea.

I would replace broccoli with something that seems to fluctuate a little more (even from bodega vs. grocer). For example: A six-pack of Heineken bottles.

Also, you might want to check the per-pound price of a meat product, say chicken breasts (which are fairly standard).

Oddly enough the store where I shop has Kelloggs corn flakes on sale this week for only $!.99 so come buy a couple of cases this week before they go back to $5. They last for centuries and possibly millennia.

Price of broccoli changes daily - almost - at Fairway. Weekly at Pioneer. So I don't think fresh fruit/vegetables are good measure.

3 foold items for Crowdsourcing Project:

Bananas

Chicken breasts (healthier and widely available)

Yoghurt (widely available, healthy, but I suspect not universally

How about:

Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Boards Head Cold cut products - per pound basis

How about milk, red peppers and Pop Tarts?

chicken breasts, chicken legs, bananas

peanut butter

english muffins

liter of coke

Local

Bread from a local bakery

Food grown w/in 500 miles vs. only China (like garlic)

Salmon -- frozen vs. fresh

AVOCADOs

Beer!

Beer widely fluctuates in price from neighborhood to neighborhood, and is generally available everywhere. Pick a popular brand, not to endorse it but to just standardize the observations, and it will be rather indicative of the city's food supply chains...

The choice of milk, broccoli and Kellog's corn flakes are good items to choose, but since you've chosen a brand name of corn flakes, you need to choose a brand name of whole milk also - pricing of milk no only varies by neighborhood, but also the price varies by brand name.

Bagels. I don't eat them anymore because I consider them junk food but when I used to indulge I was always taken aback of how many different prices one could pay for a simple bagel: anywhere from .25 to .90.

a dozen eggs
can of goya black beans
broccoli

Head of Iceberg lettuce
Quart of plain Dannon yoghurt
Refrigerator 12-pack of Coca Cola

Milk, Eggs, and Bananas

Tropicana Pure Premium Orange Juice, half gallon

Grade "A" Large Eggs.

Corn flakes is great.

How bout these foods

Beer
Cigarettes
Water

By commodities what you are really tracking are micro-local markups by retailers, interesting ... of course the Economist Magazine's classic Big Mac Index which eliminates that element to solely provide a basis level for the measure of regional and national currency differences along with domestic ingredient (McD's sources domestically) and transportation pricing.

The Big Mac Index
http://www.economist.com/markets/Bigmac/Index.cfm