Today’s CPI report showed that food inflation was even hotter in March than in February, bad news for American families and for President Trump, who recently claimed food prices were down.

Just three short days ago, President Trump took to X to champion his ongoing ‘success’ in making America great again, boldly declaring that:

“Oil prices are down, interest rates are down (the slow moving Fed should cut rates!), food prices are down, there is NO INFLATION…” [Emphasis Added.]

Did one of his staffers forget to put a reminder in his calendar that today, April 10, the Bureau of Labor Statistics would be releasing the Consumer Price Index (CPI)?

Surely, the President knows that the numbers don’t lie and that any mistruths he tweeted could be easily disproven.

Perhaps he was just optimistic that all the numbers would magically fall into place to buttress his ongoing policy decisions. Or, maybe, he is just oblivious to the real-life outcomes of his Administration’s current chaos.

Whatever the reason for his ignorance of economic policy, this morning’s CPI report showed that life – and in particular food – is not getting more affordable for the ‘Forgotten Men and Women of America First.’

While headline CPI for March showed a decrease, which will be much touted by the Administration as a success in their policies, the only reason for the 0.1% decrease in headline was falling energy prices.

So, yes, the President was correct in his assessment of oil prices.

But he was woefully incorrect when he said food prices are down.

The index for food increased 0.4% in March, after rising just 0.2% in February. The food at home index rose 0.5 percent over the month as four of the six major grocery store food group indexes increased.

Eggs, meat, poultry, and fish rose by a combined 5.9%!

The index for other food at home categories increased 0.5%, followed by dairy and related products, which rose 1.0%, and non-alcoholic beverages by 0.6% over the month.

Only fruits and vegetables, and cereals had marginal decreases.

The March year-over-year increase for food was 3.0%.

So, no, food prices are not down.

The U.S Bureau of Labor Statistics has done multiple monthly studies on the breakdown of household budgets – the average American household spends $832 per month on groceries, while only spending $225 per month on gasoline and oil.

So, while the consumer may be saving marginally on energy costs – 2.11% average nationally, since the beginning of 2025, food inflation is rising faster and represents more of their monthly budget.

With nearly 14% of American households already food insecure, one has to be concerned about what ongoing food inflation will mean for lower-income families across America, especially when the President fails to acknowledge reality.