Grocery unit sales sink for five straight months

Food and beverage brands’ efforts to get consumers to buy more haven’t quite been bearing fruit so far this year.

According to new analysis from Bain using NielsenIQ data, unit sales for US grocery have been down nearly 2% YoY most months from February through June, with June sales down 1.8% YoY.

The consistent drop in unit growth began in mid-2025, Bain found. Inflated prices between 2% and 3% haven’t been enough to offset the steady unit slowdown, driving sales down to muted growth in 2026 compared to the previous year.

Several factors are driving consumers to buy less, including cuts in SNAP benefits and eligibility, climbing gas prices, and GLP-1 usage, the report noted, with higher tax refunds this year helping keep consumers spending. Bain found that 80% of US consumers say they are aiming to spend less, with 28% specifically cutting back on grocery spend. Of those trimming their grocery bills, 56% are shifting to lower-priced options, while 49% are buying less altogether.

PepsiCo, General Mills, Kroger, and Walmart are among brands and retailers that have recently slashed prices in hopes of jumpstarting lackluster unit sales. This month, Giant Eagle—just days after it announced a$1.65 billion deal to be acquired by Kroger—said it was temporarily cutting prices by about 10% across 300+ items through Labor Day.

But Kurt Grichel, head of Bain & Company’s Americas Retail practice and co-author of the report, said in a statement that the solution to sinking unit sales isn’t simply offering lower prices, noting retailers must present “a value story that shoppers believe in and come back for.”

“The grocers and manufacturers that invest now in sharpening that proposition will be positioned to take meaningful share once the broader, market-wide conditions affected by inflation, including from gas prices, eventually shift,” Grichel said. “Retailers that respond with precision—on assortment, promotion, and private label—will be best placed to capture the trips that are still up for grabs.”