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Expect higher Thanksgiving grocery bills this year because of the bird flu

More than 45 million chickens and turkeys died this year because of the bird flu. And that means you can expect your Thanksgiving turkeys to be 10 to 15 percent...

More than 45 million chickens and turkeys died this year because of the bird flu. And that means you can expect your Thanksgiving turkeys to be 10 to 15 percent more expensive per pound.

Jerry's Market owner Tony Ceurvorst says he hasn't yet gotten his fresh turkeys in, but the prices are up, and they're staying that way.

"You will notice a slight increase in the cost of the birds. And that was predicted back when the bird flu first hit. They predicted a 10 to 15 percent increase and that's exactly what we saw," says Ceurvorst.

10 to 15 percent translates to about an extra 20 to 30 cents per pound for customers. But they types of turkeys sold for Thanksgiving, the whole birds, aren't the ones that got hit by the flu the hardest.

"Where the bird flu hit the hardest was in the production of meat birds. In other words, the ones they use to produce products like turkey breasts for delis, turkey loaves or turkey burgers," says Ceurvorst.

Ceurvorst says he's noticed an increase in price for his turkey lunch meats, and he's worried this supply could deplete as the year goes on. But whole birds for the holiday season seem to be in the clear supply wise, as long as you're okay with paying a few extra dollars for your bird.

Ceurvorst says the biggest hit for turkeys will come after the holidays because flocks will deplete. He says farmers will have to start aggressively rebuilding for the following year.

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