The cost of Super Bowl party staples has been steadily rising over the last few years, according to Axios, but the National Chicken Council and the Agriculture Department’s Economic Research Service say chicken wings are not to blame.

The National Chicken Council’s annual Chicken Wing Report projected that Americans will consume a record-breaking 1.45 billion chicken wings during Super Bowl LVII weekend. This figure represents an increase of 2 percent from last year’s report, the equivalent of 84 million more wings.

There are several reasons for the uptick, according to National Chicken Council spokesperson Tom Super.

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“The two main reasons are more favorable prices and more people getting back to normal and gathering for the Big Game, whether at home or at a bar/restaurant,” Super said. “While Americans are seeing inflation impact almost every part of their lives, both wholesale and retail wing prices are down double digits from a year ago, according to USDA, and consumers are seeing a lot more features and promotions.”

The Agriculture Department’s Economic Research Service this week confirmed prices are lower.

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“Wholesale chicken wing prices reached a peak of $3.25 per pound in late May 2021, but retail prices continued to climb,” ERS said.

“At the start of the 2022 March Madness basketball tournament, the national average retail feature price (prices advertised in grocery flyers) was estimated at $4.29 per pound.

“Nearly a year later and just ahead of the 2023 Super Bowl and basketball tournament, the national average feature price is down nearly $1.70 per pound to $2.62 (price as of Jan. 13). Increased production has boosted volumes of chicken wings in cold storage, so wholesale prices have fallen even further than retail prices.

“The average wholesale price in December 2022 was 89 cents per pound, down more than $2.50 per pound from the 2021 peak.”