• Real and artificial Christmas trees are set to cost 30% more this year, experts told Newsday.
• The supply chain crisis, last year’s high demand, and the 2008 economic recession are behind the price hike.
• One seller bumped its Christmas tree prices by $5 because its supplier increased costs.

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Consumers should prepare to pay up to 30% more for Christmas trees this year because of supply chain issues, the pandemic, and the impact of the 2008 economic

recession

, experts told Newsday on Saturday.

Fewer Christmas trees — both real and artificial — are expected to be on the market this holiday season, causing prices to rise between 10% and 30% from last year, industry experts told Newsday.

Backlogs at shipping ports and a shortage of truck drivers for deliveries are behind the rising prices and lack of Christmas trees, industry experts told Newsday.

Last year, Christmas trees were in high demand because shoppers wanted to create a festive atmosphere in their homes whilst COVID-19 loomed worldwide, Insider’s Avery Hartmans reported in December. This trend is set to stay for this year’s holiday season, industry experts told Newsday.

On top of that, farmers planted fewer trees after the 2008 economic recession because of the lack of resources and incentives. Given that Christmas trees typically take eight to 10 years to reach maturity, the supply of trees has shrunk from 2016 onwards.

“Some of the major retailers say they have about 43% of their inventory right now when it should be closer to 70% at this time of the year,” Jami Warner, executive director of the American Christmas Tree Association, told Newsday.

John Mohlenhoff, one of the firefighters at the Huntington fire department, told Newsday that it has hiked its price of Christmas trees – ranging between $50 and $120 – by $5 for the first time in ten years to offset increased costs from its supplier, a Pennsylvania tree farm.

Prices of artificial Christmas trees at Costello’s Ace Hardware have increased by up to 25% because of supply chain issues, Andy Pergament, the company’s category manager, told Newsday.

The National Tree Co. has also bumped the price of its artificial Christmas by 25% because of higher shipping and components costs, CEO Chris Butler told The Washington Post.