Image by Stephan Maloman

Today my sister received a rude awakening as to the true cost of inflation.

Here in our region of the world, Texas, you can find a dozen tamales for around $5-6. That’s a pretty typical price range. My sister had pre-ordered 3 dozen tamales from an acquaintance last week. When she went to go pick them up today she was stunned to discover that the $20 she had with her would not cover the price of her 3 dozen tamales. Nope she was short $10.

Turns out that tamales now cost $10/dozen. Or at least they did today. The reasoning for the steep price? The cost of the meat had gone up considerably hence the price increase. The reason the meat had gone up was because the cost of the grain the cow eats had gone up and so had the gas used to transport it to market.

Now here in San Antonio there is an area of town where Tamale Factories are lined up and down the street. Great selection and competition keeps the price in the $4.50-5.50 range. Or at least that was the cost earlier this year. Now after hearing my sisters tale of inflation, I wonder if we will see a similar jump in cost per dozen.

I have the urge to go down Tamale Road to check prices in anticipation of the upcoming holidays. Maybe I’ll test out a tamale or two to make sure the quality hasn’t changed even if the price has.