Each year, national news media eagerly await the results of the American Farm Bureau’s annual price survey of the cost of Thanksgiving Dinner. This year, more than 200 Farm Bureau volunteers across the country recorded prices at their local grocery stores between Oct. 21 and Nov. 9. They submitted their information to the American Farm Bureau, which used the data to determine that in 2009, a home-prepared Thanksgiving Dinner for 10 costs $42.91 on average – $1.70 or 4 percent less than last year.

For the first time, Nebraska Farm Bureau has determined the average cost of Thanksgiving Dinner in Nebraska, based on data from 17 members who participated in the national survey. It’s $42.05, 86 cents less than the national average, or about 2 percent less, according to Erma McGill of Waverly, who chairs Nebraska Farm Bureau’s Ag Promotion Committee.

The Thanksgiving shopping list includes turkey, bread stuffing, sweet potatoes, rolls with butter, peas, cranberries, a relish tray of carrots and celery, pumpkin pie with whipped cream, and beverages of coffee and milk, all in quantities sufficient to serve 10 people. A national average cost for miscellaneous ingredients needed to prepare the meal is also included in calculating the total cost.

A 16-pound turkey accounts for the largest portion of the meal. In the national survey, turkey averaged $1.16 a pound. The Nebraska price was $1.07 a pound. A gallon of whole milk was the second most-expensive item, at $2.86 nationally and $3.12 in Nebraska. (See additional cost comparisons in attachment.)

According to American Farm Bureau economist Jim Sartwelle, consumers are benefiting at the grocery store from significantly lower energy prices and the effects of the economic slowdown.

Mrs. McGill, a retired farmer, points out that a festive meal for less than $4.50 is a bargain, both nationally and in Nebraska: “That’s less than you’d spend for an everyday meal at the drive-through,” she said.