Target offers Thanksgiving feast for less than $25 as inflation rages

Target is ensuring that Thanksgiving doesn’t fall victim to inflation this year, offering a feast for a family of four — with a 10-pound turkey and all the fixings — for under $25.

The Minneapolis-based retail giant curated the budget-friendly meal on its website, suggesting low-priced items like a basted young turkey under $1 per pound, Heinz’s canned turkey gravy and a bag of Russet potatoes.

Should shoppers scoop up every item Target suggests — which also includes Stove Top stuffing mix, jellied cranberry sauce, Campbell’s cream of mushroom soup and canned cut green beans — as well as a five-pound turkey, they’ll spend just $21.79.

At this price, the meal comes out to $5.45 per person.

Target suggests simply buying two of everything on the list to feed more than four guests, or adding on seasoning blends, chopped mushrooms and crispy onions should customers have an additional $10 to spend “to make dinner even better.”

The price-per-guest for Target’s bargain feast is $1.05 less than the average family pays per person for Thanksgiving dinner, according to the American Farm Bureau Federation.

The Farm Bureau said that a classic Thanksgiving feast for 10 typically runs a family in the US $64.05, or about $6.50 per guest — a 20%, or $10.74, increase from the average cost of dinner on the holiday in 2021.

The nonprofit agricultural organization said that the turkey centerpiece typically costs hosts $1.81 per pound — a 21% increase from 2022.

However, at just $0.99 per pound, Target’s holiday bird “is helping guests stretch their budget,” the retailer said in a press release on Wednesday.

Target’s Thanksgiving turkey also has a price cap of $15.84 for a 16-pound bird — less than the $28.96 turkey the Farm Bureau says the average American will pay for a turkey on the upcoming holiday, which falls on Nov. 23 this year.

Target rivals, Walmart and Aldi are competing for business from Thanksgiving hosts by dropping their own prices on holiday food staples as of Nov. 1.

For the second consecutive year, “Walmart is again removing inflation to offer a traditional Thanksgiving meal on customers’ favorite brands at an even lower price than last year,” the retail giant announced last month.

The savings, Walmart said, will be valid through Dec. 26.

The price cuts have slashed some whole turkey options at Walmart to just $0.98 per pound, while the Arkansas-based retailer is also offering savings on Thanksgiving pantry necessities like pecans, canned candied yams, and bacon bits, plus produce desserts and beverages.

Walmart is even advertising fall-themed decor “starting at $3” that it says will give customers’ dining table “that Thanksgiving magic.”

However, many tabletop items do not boast budget-friendly discounts, such as a 12-piece ceramic dinnerware collection for $49.88, a 20-piece flatware set for nearly $25, and three candlestick holders for $19.94.

Aldi said it also implemented as high as 50% price cuts as of Nov. 1 on “over 70 holiday classics…so families can save more and seat more this Thanksgiving.”

Though Aldi doesn’t list prices on its website, it pointed to sides, charcuterie fixings, and baking essentials that cited some of the product-price reductions in a press release on the discounts.

Brioche rolls, for example, are now retailing for $3.29, down from $4.69 before Nov. 1, while Prosciutto is down from $3.69 to $2.69, and vanilla extract, which was $5.89, is now selling for $3.49.