Bozeman Families Are Getting Hit Twice — At the Pump and in the Grocery Aisle

The number is $100. That's how much more Bozeman families are spending every month just to keep their gas tanks full — and it traces back to a war hard-working families had no say in. 

How the Iran War Pushed Gas Prices Higher in the Bozeman Area

Iran controls access to the Strait of Hormuz — a 21-mile-wide channel in the Persian Gulf through which roughly one in five barrels of the world's traded oil must pass every day. When U.S. and Israeli forces went to war with Iran, shipping through that passage became nearly impossible. Crude soared to $100/barrel. The pre-war national average of $2.98/gallon was gone almost overnight. In the Bozeman area, anything under $3.89 is now considered a deal — and a 20-gallon fill-up costs $11–$18 more than before the conflict began. Fill up once a week and that's $100 more gone by the end of the month.

Rising Fuel Costs Have Made Groceries More Expensive Too

The price of oil doesn't stay at the pump. It runs through every step between the farm and your cart. Trucks that deliver to Albertsons and Walmart run on diesel. When diesel is expensive, delivery is expensive. When delivery is expensive, the store pays more to stock the shelf. When the store pays more, you pay more at checkout. Ground beef is $6.90/lb, milk around $3.68/gallon, and eggs are $3.93/dozen. Town Pump offers loyalty savings on fuel — but the baseline cost is what it is.

Montana grocery costs rank among the highest in the nation, and households are now spending roughly $149 more per month on food compared to a few years ago. Bozeman's rapid growth has pushed the cost of living up across the board — and for families already stretched by housing costs, the Iran war's effect on energy prices is one more bill they didn't ask for.

Tariffs Are Adding to the Pressure at the Shelf

On top of the fuel costs running through the supply chain, there's a second force

pushing grocery prices up: tariffs. The 25% tariffs on imports from Mexico and Canada hit grocery bills directly, because a significant share of the fresh produce in stores like Albertsons and Walmart comes across those borders. Avocados, tomatoes, peppers, strawberries, limes — most of it moves through Mexican supply chains. When a tariff is applied at the border, importers pay more, distributors pay more, and the markup lands on the shelf.

Steel and aluminum tariffs have pushed costs higher across the grocery store — researchers found that retailers pass the full cost of tariffs on to consumers, and grocery bills here reflect it. For families stocking up on staples, those increases compound with everything else. The bill at checkout reflects more than one policy decision — it reflects several of them, all landing at once.