For many Hispanic families throughout the U.S., Thanksgiving is more than just a turkey on the table. It is one of the few moments in the year when relatives travel in, kids are home from school and everyone slows down long enough to share a meal. But as energy and food costs rise together, that holiday table is getting more expensive, and the effects are hitting Hispanic households harder.
In 2024, Hispanic households faced a higher energy burden than other American households, which means they spend a larger share of their income on utilities than other Americans. That gap is not simply a statistic, it’s real time impacts on people’s lives. It is the difference between comfortably buying everything for a holiday meal or having to make sacrifices.
When the Energy Competes With the Grocery List
Energy burden is the share of a family’s income that goes toward electricity, natural gas and other utilities. Researchers have repeatedly found that Hispanic households face significantly higher energy burdens than the average household. This forces more tradeoffs between utility bills and essentials like food and medicine.
Recent analysis shows Hispanic households spend around 8% of their income on combined home and transportation energy costs. That’s around 42% above the national average. When incomes are modest, that extra share adds up quickly, especially in states with high Hispanic populations, where families may rely on both heating and long drives to work, school or extended family.
By the time November arrives, many households are already behind: high energy bills over the summer, back-to-school expenses, upcoming holidays and any unexpected repairs. In that reality, Thanksgiving is not just a celebration. It is a budgeting challenge.
How Energy Prices Show Up in Every Thanksgiving Dish
Rising energy costs don’t just show up on the utility bill. They quietly raise the cost of every step that gets food from the farm to the family table.
The Farm to Table report from Consumer Energy Alliance (CEA) breaks down that chain: fertilizers made from natural gas, diesel for tractors and trucks, electricity for cold storage and grocery store refrigeration, and the fuel families use to drive to the store and cook at home. When those energy inputs go up, farmers’ costs rise and so do grocery prices, from potatoes and vegetables to turkey and dessert.
The analysis, drawing on USDA data, shows the annual cost of feeding a family of four has climbed to more than $16,000 a year. That’s a 21% increase since 2021. The report also explains how fuel, fertilizer and electricity can make up 19% to 37% of total operating costs for family farms, which means energy prices are a major driver of what families pay at the store. And global research echoes this, with the World Bank finding that energy costs have been a leading driver of food price increases in recent years.
So when energy prices rise, the cost of every Thanksgiving ingredient (turkey, stuffing, vegetables and even the pie crust) moves up with them.
What That Means for Hispanic Families
Put together, these realities create a specific risk for Hispanic families around the holidays:
- They already spend a higher share of their income on energy than other households.
- Energy costs push up both the monthly utility bill and the cost of food, especially for items that are energy-intensive to produce, refrigerate and transport.
- By the time they cover rent, gas and utilities, there is simply less left over for a large holiday meal, travel to see loved ones, or small extras that make Thanksgiving special.
For some families, that might mean a smaller menu. For others, it could mean choosing between hosting guests or paying the heating bill in full as temperature drops. These aren’t abstract policy questions. They are the day-to-day trade offs happening in households that already contribute enormously to the economy and communities.
Making Policy With the Holiday Table in Mind
When lawmakers consider energy policies that may raise costs, they are not just adjusting numbers on a spreadsheet. They are affecting whether a Hispanic family in the U.S. can afford both the electricity to keep the fridge on and the groceries to fill it.
The National Hispanic Energy Council exists to remind policymakers that energy policy is family policy. For Hispanic communities across the country, reducing the energy burden is not about luxury. It is about protecting space in the budget for food, medicine and moments like Thanksgiving that hold families together.
