Pennsylvania-Based Gas Station Chain Warns Customers About Rising Candy Prices
In a world where we frequently see price increases with no warning or explanation, it's refreshing when a store tells us what's going on. While food prices haven't been rising as fast as they were in 2022, a mix of unusual weather and the ongoing effects of tariffs on major U.S. trading partners have been driving up the cost of certain staples. Eggs have been spiking again after some relief and drought has driven up the cost of beef and coffee. And while it's not exactly essential, the Pennsylvania chain Sheetz is now warning customers that price increases will soon be hitting candy from Hershey's.
The warning has come in the form of in-store signs as the popular gas station chain, which is a regional competitor with the similar Wawa. According to reporting from Penn Live, signs in Sheetz have revealed the prices for Hershey's products including chocolate bars, KitKat, and Reese's will be raised on September 17. A spokesperson for Sheetz said this is in response to rising prices from Hershey's itself, which have jumped 26% on regular and king-sized versions of the candy bars. The good news is that according to Sheetz no other brands are being affected yet, so your Halloween candy isn't going to completely break the bank. Hershey's itself has previously announced the increase in prices and blamed them on the rising cost of cocoa, which has surged over the past two years.
Sheetz says its raising the prices of Hershey's products as high cocoa costs drive up expenses
Hershey's is certainly right about the high cost of coca. The crop hit record high prices earlier this year, driven by poor harvests in Ghana and the Ivory Coast, which account for the majority of all world cocoa production. The price of cocoa futures rose 61% in 2023 and 178% in 2024, and while the increases have slowed down and started to reverse recently, prices are expected to remain high. The downturn in production has been blamed on increasing heat waves due to climate change, with some projections showing the world's largest cocoa producing region may become too hot to produce the crop in the coming decades.
In addition to price hikes, Hershey's also said they will be shrinking the size of some of its products, which is often called "Shrinkflation." The company has said prices have not yet been impacted by tariffs, but that it is anticipating costs of $15 to $20 million from the ongoing trade war. Hershey's CEO says he reminded the White House that cocoa cannot be grown in the United States, so tariffs on the tropical commodity are not protecting any American jobs. And Hershey's is not alone in being impacted by the rising cost of cocoa, with Lindt also announcing a 15.8% increase in prices earlier this year. It seems like both the weather and the government are coming after your chocolate break.