Prompt Cast
Economic Mystery of Thanksgiving Turkey Prices
TLDR Despite high demand, turkey prices drop during the holidays due to counter cyclical pricing strategies used by supermarkets to attract price sensitive customers. Thanksgiving involves more than just turkey, with home production playing a significant role in the economy and seating arrangements at the feast optimized using matching theory from economics.
Timestamped Summary
00:00
Planet Money celebrates Thanksgiving by investigating the economic mystery of why turkey prices drop during the holidays despite high demand.
03:22
Turkeys are cheaper during the holidays despite high demand due to counter cyclical pricing, with theories suggesting supermarkets use them as loss leaders to attract more consumers.
07:07
Price sensitive customers drive stores to lower turkey prices during the holidays, a phenomenon also observed with other products like champagne and avocados, with new theories explaining the counter cyclical pricing of turkeys.
10:30
Thanksgiving is not just about turkey, but also about the extensive work and home production involved in preparing side dishes, which is not officially counted in the economy's measurements like GDP.
13:58
Home production, not accounted for in GDP, plays a significant role in the economy, especially during times like the pandemic, impacting the overall economic state when combined with traditional GDP measurements.
18:57
Optimizing seating arrangements at a Thanksgiving feast involves applying matching theory from economics to balance overall happiness and stability among guests' preferences.
22:36
Optimizing the Thanksgiving table seating arrangement for stability through a computer program simulation resulted in a supposedly stable table that was tested and confirmed to have achieved a fair and happy arrangement.
26:05
The Planet Money team enjoyed a Thanksgiving feast with turkey, roast beef, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, and a special cranberry sauce with a secret ingredient.
