First Nations Development Institute Releases Second Quarterly Results from Monitoring Food Prices, Indicating that American Indians and Alaska Natives Continue to Pay Higher Costs

Longmont, Colorado, Aug. 24, 2017 -- First Nations Development Institute (First Nations) – as part of its work to combat food insecurity, eliminate food inequities, and support economic and business development in Native American communities – today released the second quarterly results on food prices on Lower 48 reservations and in Alaska Native villages. First Nations is in the process of a 12-month study on food prices in tribal communities.

Preliminary results for tribal communities in the contiguous United States indicate that for the second quarter Native shoppers paid on average $8.26 more for a basket of items. Similarly, in Alaska Native villages, shoppers on average paid $33.32 more when compared to the national average for the same basket of food items.

(To see four graphs associated with this study, please go here: http://www.firstnations.org/FoodIndexQ2)

The study captured food-price trends over the months of April, May and June 2017. Shoppers in 38 Native communities and eight Alaska Native villages have been collecting prices monthly on food items. First Nations has been comparing these prices to data provided by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, which provides national averages for similar food items.

While there was a slight increase in what Native shoppers paid in the Lower 48 for the same basket of food as compared to the first quarter (an increase of 75 cents over the first quarter’s $7.51 difference), the Alaska Native shoppers showed a slight decrease over last quarter (a decrease of $6.16 from the $39.48 total difference in the first quarter). However, Native shoppers continued to pay higher prices overall versus the national average. Despite these challenges, Native shoppers are finding creative ways to overcome these obstacles.

"Individuals and programs in tribal communities are planting their own community gardens and creating other programs designed to increase food access, like farmers’ markets. The goal is to feed Native individuals and families by offering fresh food from the garden and farm directly to their table, which helps stretch dollars from their limited food budgets,” said Jackie Francke, First Nations Vice President of Programs and Administration.

Alaska Natives shop online and also use traditional and other creative ways to feed their families.

“Local residents are allowed to subsistence fish and hunt, and this is one way that we would be able to supplement purchases from a local store. Some people also purchase in bulk from warehouse stores while they are out of town, and bring it back as checked baggage,” said Delores Gregory, Community Wellness Advocate for Aleutian Pribilof Islands Association in Unalaska, Alaska.

In First Nations’ ongoing study, monthly food prices are being collected on the following food items:  loaf of white bread, one pound of ground beef, whole chicken (price per pound), one dozen large eggs, one gallon of whole milk, red delicious apples (price per pound), pound of tomatoes, coffee (regular and decaffeinated, ground, cost per pound). Project participants enter their monthly collected prices into an online database provided by First Nations by the 15th of each month.

The data is then compared against the national average prices listed in the Consumer Price Index for Urban Consumers from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The third quarterly results for the months of July, August and September will be released in November 2017. At the end of the year-long study, a revised Indian Country Food Price Index will be released.

• To review the First Quarter 2017 findings, click here.
• To see a news release about the original Indian Country Food Price Index from July 2016, go here.

About First Nations Development Institute

For 37 years, using a three-pronged strategy of educating grassroots practitioners, advocating for systemic change, and capitalizing Indian communities, First Nations has been working to restore Native American control and culturally-compatible stewardship of the assets they own – be they land, human potential, cultural heritage or natural resources – and to establish new assets for ensuring the long-term vitality of Native American communities. First Nations serves Native American communities throughout the United States. For more information about First Nations, visit www.firstnations.org.

PROGRAM CONTACT: Yadira Rivera, Food Price Index Project Manager, and Grants and Program Assistant [email protected] or (303) 774-7836 x 219

MEDIA CONTACT: Mary K. Bowannie, First Nations Communications Officer [email protected] or (303) 774-7836 x209