Beef, coffee, tomatoes: America’s CEOs call out where food prices are rising

US consumers continue to experience sticky inflation across everything from beef and coffee to even pineapples, and America’s CEOs are calling out how supply chain constraints are driving higher prices.

In April, food prices in the US increased 0.5% from the previous month and 3.2% year over year, according to the government’s Consumer Price Index report, as overall price inflation marked its largest annual increase in three years. Food at home rose 2.9% on an annual basis, while food away from home increased 3.6%.

Here are some of the food items with substantial price increases.

High beef prices hit fast food chains

According to CPI data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the price of uncooked ground beef was up around 15% in April compared to last year as beef prices reached a record $6.90 per pound.

“There’s no doubt there continues to be pressure on a commodity like beef,” McDonald’s (MCD) CFO Ian Borden told Yahoo Finance. He said the company can work with its supply partners to “navigate through pressure points.”

Beef makes up about 40% of McDonald’s overall mix, while chicken is only in the high teens. McDonald’s CEO Chris Kempczinski said that when beef prices are elevated, “chicken becomes a much more attractive value opportunity.”

Both Chipotle (CMG) and Restaurant Brand International (QSR), the parent company behind Burger King, weighed in on the matter too, each saying they expect a modest mid-single-digit uptick in beef inflation this year.

“We’re seeing that elevated level of beef costs kind of persist a little bit,” Restaurant Brands International CFO Sami Siddiqui said. “This is natural. It’s part of a herd rebuilding cycle that occurs in our industry every so often.”

The company didn’t specify whether it raised prices for customers but did say the chain saw high-single-digit food cost increases in its latest quarter, driven by beef, which makes up a 25% of its overall basket.

For Chipotle (CMG), food, beverage, and packaging costs in the first quarter of 2026 ticked up to 29.6% of total revenue from 29.2% last year, which was also driven by beef costs. The company raised prices by roughly 1%.

Shake Shack (SHAK) executives said they expect beef inflation to remain in the high single digits. In the first quarter, the burger chain decided to raise prices by 3% compared to approximately 5% price hikes last year.

Close-up of McDonald's Double Quarter Pounder burger, Lafayette, California, May 5, 2026. (Photo by Smith Collection/Gado/Getty Images) — Close-up of McDonald’s Double Quarter Pounder burger, Lafayette, California, May 5, 2026. (Smith Collection/Gado/Getty Images) · Smith Collection/Gado via Getty Images

Coffee prices jump with signs of relief ahead

Coffee prices also jumped 18.5% from last year and rose 2% from the previous month, according to the latest Consumer Price Index data.

Both Dutch Bros (BROS) and Starbucks (SBUX) are hopeful that coffee prices will see some relief soon as more supply comes in from Brazil and Vietnam.

“We believe that coffee prices, although incredibly high right now, are likely something that will be somewhat temporary, and so [we] feel comfortable absorbing that for our customers while we’re hopefully waiting for those coffee prices to come down a little bit,” Dutch Bros CEO Christine Barone told Yahoo Finance. The restaurant chain raised prices by 1.5% at the start of the year and will continue to raise prices at the same cadence in the second quarter.

Starbucks CFO Cathy Smith said the team expects “tariff and coffee pressures to moderate in the back half of fiscal 2026.”

Starbucks did not comment on raising prices for consumers in the near term to offset the pressure, but said the company is leaning into its value proposition.

Hand holding an iced coffee in front of a Starbucks at Palos Verdes Mall, Walnut Creek, California, September 24, 2024. (Photo by Smith Collection/Gado/Getty Images) — Person holding an iced coffee in front of a Starbucks at Palos Verdes Mall, Walnut Creek, Calif., on Sept. 24, 2024. (Smith Collection/Gado/Getty Images) · Smith Collection/Gado via Getty Images

Tomato prices go shockingly higher

If you’re looking for some fresh fruit or vegetables at your local grocery store, that’ll cost more too. Fruit and vegetable prices were up 6.1% over the past 12 months.

Tomato prices surged 40% in April from the year before. Wells Fargo agricultural economist Michael Swanson noted that cold weather in Florida led to a smaller supply.

Tomato producers are “able to take advantage of that missing supply to price up, because tomatoes are pretty inelastic,” Swanson said. “You know, when you go to your fast food [restaurant] to get your sandwich, or whatever, you expect tomatoes on it, regardless of price.”

APOLLO BEACH, FL - April 25: Tomatoes are sorted and packed at the DiMare Ruskin tomato packing plant in Apollo Beach, Fla. on April 25, 2025. (Photo by Thomas Simonetti for The Washington Post via Getty Images) — Tomatoes are sorted and packed at the DiMare Ruskin tomato packing plant in Apollo Beach, Fla. on April 25, 2025. (Thomas Simonetti for The Washington Post via Getty Images) · The Washington Post via Getty Images

Swanson added that the price spike for tomatoes may be short-lived, however, as that pricing is seasonal and “goes up like a rocket, falls like a stone.”

Some fruit prices, on the other hand, may go even higher. Pineapple producer Fresh Del Monte Produce is warning of even higher prices later this year.

CEO Mohammad Abu-Ghazaleh said the conflict in the Middle East led to “meaningful shock” across food production, energy, fertilizers, packaging, and transportation. He added that, no matter the outcome, the ripple effect leading to higher grocery prices is already well underway.

“There is no part of agriculture that is not energy dependent, from inputs to packaging to transportation,” Abu-Ghazaleh told investors. “In crops like pineapples, for instance, where production cycles extend to approximately 18 months, the inputs being deployed today will be reflected in cost and pricing later this year.”

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Brooke DiPalma is a reporter for Yahoo Finance. Follow her on X at @BrookeDiPalma or email her at bdipalma@yahoofinance.com.

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