Walmart has tweaked its holiday meal deal, reducing the number of people the package of foods is intended to serve while raising the number of items it includes.
The retailer originally said the meal promotion, which it announced Sept. 19, included enough food to serve as many as 10 people for less than $7 per person. But on Thursday, Walmart issued a new press release about the package that says it is intended to serve eight people and also modified its earlier announcement to reflect that change.
Walmart also said Thursday that its holiday meal deal encompasses 29 items, up from the 28 items the earlier announcement said the promotion would include.
In addition, Thursday’s announcement said Walmart is charging 88 cents per pound for turkey through the “inflation-free” promotion, which runs through Dec. 24 and is available in-store and online. Walmart earlier said only that it would charge under $1 per pound for the food.
The modified holiday meal deal also ends one day earlier than Walmart first announced.
The retailer decided to make the adjustments — which included changing the serving size “to a more standard 8” — before the promotion began this week, a Walmart spokesperson wrote in an email. The spokesperson noted that Walmart’s holiday meal program started ahead of similar offerings from other grocers and includes national as well as private brand products. Walmart is also allowing people to donate the equivalent of a meal to the Salvation Army.
Holiday-focused meal promotions have emerged as key marketing tools for grocers in recent years as retailers look to attract inflation-battered consumers focused squarely on saving money when shopping for food. Walmart seized momentum by announcing its promotion for this holiday season in September, ahead of its rivals, emphasizing that the deal would begin in mid-October — two weeks ahead of when it kicked off a similar meal promotion last year. The retailer also said it would charge less for the promotion this year than it did in 2023.
Aldi, meanwhile, announced Wednesday that it is offering the components for a Thanksgiving meal intended to feed 10 people for under $47. The discounter said it is charging less for the package than it did in 2019. Unlike Walmart’s holiday meal deal, however, Aldi’s promotion will only be available through the day before Thanksgiving.
