American Kitchen Tales publishes information about grocery prices, food costs, and home cooking. This page sets out what that information is and what it is not.
Prices change and vary
Every price figure on this site reflects the data available when the article was written.
Where a price comes from federal data, it is a national average for US urban areas published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics or the USDA, and the source is cited in that article. A national average is not what you will pay. Prices vary by region, by chain, by week, and by promotion, and the gap between the average and your shelf tag is often substantial.
Where BLS or USDA does not track an item, the figure is the author’s estimate from ordinary supermarket prices, and the article says so. Those estimates are informed guesses, not measurements.
Cost per serving, cost per calorie, and cost per gram of protein are calculated by the author from those inputs. The assumptions behind each calculation are written out in the article so you can disagree with them and redo the arithmetic with your own numbers. You are encouraged to do exactly that.
Nothing on this site should be treated as a current price quote or as a guarantee of what anything costs today.
Nutrition figures are estimates
Nutrition information in recipes is calculated from USDA FoodData Central reference values applied to the listed ingredients. It is not a laboratory analysis.
Actual values will differ with brands, portion sizes, cooking method, and how closely you follow a recipe. Sodium figures in particular vary enormously with the specific products you buy and are often given as a range or omitted for that reason.
Not professional advice
Content on this site is general information only.
It is not medical, nutritional, dietary, financial, or legal advice, and no article here is written with knowledge of your circumstances. If you have allergies, dietary restrictions, a medical condition, or are pregnant, consult a qualified professional before changing what you eat. Where an article touches on health guidance, such as fish consumption or food safety, it links to the relevant federal agency, and that agency’s current guidance takes precedence over anything summarized here.
Food safety is your responsibility
Recipes and food handling information are provided in good faith and draw on published USDA and FDA guidance, cited where relevant.
You are responsible for handling, storing, cooking, and reheating food safely in your own kitchen, including cooking to safe internal temperatures and following the storage advice on the products you buy. Cooking involves heat, sharp tools, and hot oil. Use them carefully.
Errors and corrections
I get things wrong. When I find an error, or a reader points one out, I correct the article and say so in it rather than editing quietly.
Several articles on this site correct claims made in earlier ones. That is intentional. If you find a mistake in a number, a calculation, or an assumption, email contact@americankitchentales.com and I will fix it.
Independence and advertising
This site displays advertising. Advertisements are served by third parties, and their presence is not an endorsement.
Editorial content is not for sale. No company pays for coverage here, and no article is written or altered in exchange for payment or products. Where a statistic originates from a business with a commercial interest in the answer, articles here say so and generally exclude it.
If affiliate links are ever used, they will be disclosed clearly in the article where they appear.
External links
Articles link to external sources, including government agencies, universities, research publications, and news outlets, so readers can check claims. Those sites are outside our control, their content may change, and a link is not an endorsement of everything they publish.
Contact
Questions about anything on this page can be sent to contact@americankitchentales.com.