Are Groceries Harder To Afford Since Pandemic? 62% Of NYers Say 'Yes'

NEW YORK CITY — The cost of groceries is too damn high, New York City dwellers say.

A significant majority — 62 percent — of New Yorkers surveyed said it's harder to afford groceries now than before the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a new poll by No Kid Hungry and Change Research.

Rising grocery costs and other stresses forced 36 percent of New York City adults surveyed to skip a meal at least once in the past year, the poll found.

And households with public school children faced the most hardships — 67 percent said it's harder to afford groceries, the poll found.

“Child hunger is hiding in plain sight across New York City," said Rachel Sabella, director of No Kid Hungry New York, in a statement. "All around us, families are skipping meals and running out of food in the home before the next paycheck. It’s shocking how many families are hurting and finding it harder just to afford the basics."

The survey dropped Thursday, just hours before the city's Rent Guidelines Board effectively said rent is too damn low.

Board members preliminarily voted to increase rent-stabilized apartment prices up to 6 percent. Housing advocates during the live-streamed meeting decried the vote, in part because low-income New Yorkers are already struggling with paying the higher cost of food.

Parents are particularly pained by the financial pinch, according to the No Kid Hungry poll.

Just above two-thirds of New Yorkers survey said they worry about being a paycheck or emergency way from not being able to pay for food or bills — that number is higher for parents: 67 percent, according to the survey.

The poll found majorities of New Yorkers support measures to address hunger, with 87 percent support expanded access to school-based programs like Grab-and-Go Breakfast.

Read the whole poll here.