Food prices, as measured by the Consumer Price Index (CPI), increased 2.2 percent in 1993. This increase was less than the overall increase in the CPI for the third consecutive year. Higher charges for processing and distribution mainly accounted for the 1993 increase. The prices farmers received for commodities, as measured by the farm value of USDA’s market basket of foods, rose 1.6 percent. The farm value share of the food dollar spent in grocery stores in 1993 was 26 percent, the same as in 1992. The farm-to-retail price spread of USDA's market basket of foods rose 2.9 percent, partly reflecting higher prices of inputs, such as labor.