The big news at the Greenspring Shell station is the drop in price. A few weeks ago, it was $4.19 a gallon. This week, it’s all the way down to $3.99. Such a bargain! The other day, you could buy gas for $3.81 a gallon at the Crown station at Park Heights and Rogers Avenue and immediately become the envy of all your friends. Such a deal!

Now everybody wonders, if gasoline prices are dropping — and, for at least a few ticks of the clock, they are — can food prices be far behind?

It’s the natural follow-up question, because transporting food to markets represents such a big chunk of the price. The Shell station’s at one end of the Greenspring Shopping Center, in northwest Baltimore County. At the other end, we find the Shoppers food store, where an elderly lady’s putting quite a few cans of soup into her shopping cart.

Outside, the mercury’s moved past 90 degrees, and she’s thinking soup?

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“Last winter,” she says, holding up an off-brand can of cream of mushroom, “this was two for $3. Look how much I’m saving by stocking up in the summer. It’ll keep till next winter, and I’ll congratulate myself for getting a bargain today.”

A quarter here, a quarter there, it adds up.

On Thursday in this space, we wondered about people cutting back on luxury items during such a difficult economic time.

Pricey bottled water came to mind. There’s so much tap water available for so little money, but the bottled stuff keeps splashing off the shelves.

At the Food Marketing Institute, media manager Kathleen Thomas said Americans are significantly cutting back on luxury items, bottled water notwithstanding. But now she’s sent over a new study, “Grocery Shopping Trends 2008,” that details just how dramatically habits are changing when we walk down our supermarket aisles.

“Shoppers of all income groups are looking to economize,” the study says. Most especially, women working part time, female baby boomers, the elderly and students.

“With increases of more than 7 percent, shoppers are paying significantly more for transportation and house heating than they had over the past decade,” the study says. “And personal debt levels and the decline in the housing market are causing many shoppers to feel the pinch.”

Up “significantly” from last year, the study says, 48 percent of shoppers say the tight economy is having an impact on their food buying. That includes 52 percent of those earning less than $100,000 a year — not surprising — and 28 percent among those who earn six figures a year but still worry about increasing costs.

And, for households of four or more people, 65 percent say they’ve changed their shopping patterns.

What kind of changes? The study says 48 percent of us are now buying fewer food items overall, and 57 percent are buying more canned, frozen or boxed food items instead of fresh, nonpreserved food. Others cook more and eat out less (71 percent), buy fewer luxury food items (67 percent), buy more store-brand items instead of national brands (60 percent), eat more leftovers or use leftovers to make other meals (58 percent), or dine at less expensive places (58 percent).

All of these figures represent significant jumps over previous years.

Some of this brings us back to the lady with the cream of mushroom soup. Never mind the thought of eating soup in such awful summer heat. The study says, “A rising 67 percent of shoppers stock up on items when they find a bargain either fairly often or almost every time.”

Also, “A rising 40 percent of shoppers look for grocery specials in the newspaper or circulars delivered to their homes. Three in 10 shoppers keep an eye out for cents-off coupons received in the mail.”

The government says U.S. food prices likely will rise 4.5 to 5.5 percent this year. It’s the highest increase in 18 years, reflected in our anxiety at the food market and restaurants.

Even this week — it’s Restaurant Week, folks — restaurant owners are expressing anxiety over falling business.

About 80 Baltimore restaurants are offering selected three-course dinner menus at reduced prices. It’s an effort designed to spark business during slow periods. The problem is, this slow period is dragging on and on.

Over the past two years, says the National Restaurant Association, wholesale food prices have jumped 15.5 percent.

That’s why even the slightest drop at the gas pump sends a few ripples of hope — for a moment or two — to those getting food at the market or their favorite restaurant.