New York City parents were outraged when they had to pay $14 for a waffle cone from an ice cream truck.
Several parents decided to buy their kids ice cream from the pink ice cream truck near Astoria Park in Queens, but ended up paying more than they had planned. One parent paid $26 for two kids. according to To New York Post.
According to the report, the ice cream truck charged $5 cash or $5.99 by credit or debit card for a single cone, $10 cash for a double cone or $10.99 by credit or debit card, and $12 cash for a sundae or milkshake or $12.99 by credit or debit card.
“Some people are taking advantage of inflation,” Henry Fernandez told the outlet, adding that he gave the woman a $20 bill thinking he would “get some change back” but ended up paying $26 to treat his two kids for a small sundae and shaken float.
Another parent, who ended up paying $14 for the waffle cone, told the outlet that parents would be “angry” if they tried to take the ice cream away from their child and that it would cause the parent “a rough afternoon.”
The media outlet noted that ice cream truck vendors in different parts of the city had similar pricing for their products.
Steven Christensen, executive director of the North American Ice Cream Association, told the outlet that many of these companies are looking to “strike while the iron is hot.”
A No Kid Hungry New York poll released in April found that 85% of New Yorkers believe food costs are rising faster than their incomes.
Of them VotedForty-seven percent said it has become “harder” to buy groceries in the past 12 months, while 32 percent said it has become “somewhat harder.” Eighteen percent said it was about the same, 2 percent said it had become “somewhat easier,” and just 1 percent said it has become much easier to buy groceries.
Over the past few years, ice cream truck owners have been forced to increase their prices to combat ongoing inflation.
of The New York Times report In July 2022, ice cream truck owners found themselves having to compete with traditional ice cream shops, especially those using delivery apps like DoorDash and UberEats, and faced not only the costs of ingredients and gas, but also repairs for their equipment and trucks.
Owning an ice cream truck was once a lucrative business, but the expenses have become unaffordable for some: Diesel fuel to run the trucks costs more than $7 a gallon, vanilla ice cream costs $13 a gallon and a 25-pound box of sprinkles sells for about $60, double what it cost a year ago.
One Queens ice cream vendor told the outlet that his “slush machine broke” and needed $1,600 in parts to fix it, and after waiting several months to save up the money, the price nearly doubled to $3,000, so he took slushies off the menu.
