WASHINGTON Foodservice operators’ struggles with soaring commodity inflation were underscored Tuesday by the Labor Department’s report that record spikes in food and energy drove domestic wholesale prices for March to their second-largest monthly increase in 33 years.
After declining 0.5 percent in February, food prices rose 1.2 percent in March as vegetables jumped 15.4 percent, milled rice climbed 8.7 percent and beef and veal increased 4.0 percent.
Wholesale energy prices grew 2.9 percent in March after rising 0.8 percent in February.
The overall U.S. producer price index advanced 1.1 percent last month, after rising 0.3 percent in February on a seasonally adjusted basis, the department said.
Excluding food and energy, the core index rose 0.2 percent in March, versus 0.5 percent in February and 0.4 percent in January.
For the 12 month ended in March, wholesale prices advanced 6.9 percent on an unadjusted basis.