WISCONSIN — With about a week to go to Thanksgiving, some new data is surely welcome news to anyone hosting family and friends for the holiday this year: prices for the traditional Thanksgiving meal are down slightly from a year ago, according to Wisconsin Farm Bureau’s annual Marketbasket survey.

The survey tallies up the price of popular food items used in a Thanksgiving dinner that can serve up to 10 people.

In Wisconsin, the average price for that meal this year is $58.81, while the national estimate is $61.17. Prices for meals in the Badger State will also cost 1.36% less this year. Nationally, there was a 4.5% decrease from 2022.

“After several years of steep inclines, it is nice to see prices come down, even slightly,” said WFBF’s Director of Media Relations and Outreach Cassie Sonnentag. “Here in America’s Dairyland, we have some of the most affordable food options, making our Thanksgiving meal 3.9% less than the national average.”

The price of a turkey is what contributed the most to the decrease in prices this year, the Farm Bureau found. In Wisconsin the price was $0.21 less per pound for a turkey than in 2022. Officials said that can largely be attributed to the decline in the spread of the Avian Flu in the past year.

Although there was a decrease in turkey prices, produce prices were up statewide. Officials said inflation and the drought in Wisconsin are to blame.

Despite changing prices for consumers, Cassie Sonnentag, director of media relations and outreach for the Wisconsin Farm Bureau Federation, said the overall Wisconsin farmers’ share has remained relatively consistent.

“It’s important to remember that farmers are ‘price takers,’ not ‘price makers,’” Sonnentag said. “While we see that price changing and fluctuating in the grocery store, the farmer’s share of that food dollar stays pretty consistent around the $0.15-on-the $1.00 mark.”

Watch the full interview above.