Posted on 04/01/2008 4:10:34 AM PDT by JZelle
As if a housing crisis, rising energy costs and a soft labor market weren't enough to cause economic anxiety for the average American, now consumers are feeling the pinch of rapidly escalating food costs.
The United States has long prided itself in being the breadbasket of the world, and Americans have traditionally paid a smaller share of their income on food than citizens of other developed countries. But the days of cheap milk, bread, beef and poultry may well be over — and Uncle Sam is partly to blame.
In 2007, the cost of a gallon of milk increased 26 percent; eggs went up 40 percent; and a loaf of white bread went from $1.05 to $1.28 from 2006 to 2008. Steep increases in the price of oil have contributed to these higher costs, but the federal government has played a pernicious role as well. By mandating that oil companies increase the amount of ethanol they blend with gasoline, the government has not only artificially increased the cost of corn, which is what most U.S. ethanol is made of, but has driven up the cost of other grains as well.
Inflated corn prices encourage farmers to divert more acreage to corn, which means they plant less soy and wheat, which, in turn, drives up the prices of those commodities. The aggregate price of wheat, corn, soy oil and soy meal in the U.S. will be $61.7 billion higher in the 2007-2008 crop year than it was in 2005-2006.
Corn prices affect a host of other food prices too. If you've ever looked at the ingredient labels on everything from bologna to canned tomato soup, you'll see corn syrup is a common ingredient of many processed foods.
(Excerpt) Read more at washingtontimes.com ...
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...corn syrup is a common ingredient of many processed foods.
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Well, a shortage of that is not a bad thing, I suspect, since many nutrition experts are now blaming high fructose corn syrup as a major factor in the huge increase in obesity in our country.
I have been puzzled by this. There has been no significant increase in the cost of soda. Can anyone ‘splain it to me?
When is Atlas gonna shrug?”
I think of that every time I see some article about soybeans and how many acres are being planted or who wants us to start eating more soy products. I gagged on the milk, and I refused the tofu.
It’s George Bush’s fault.
Tofu is evil.
ya gotta make it right. I'm just about ready to fix some thai rice with fried tofu...yum!
It's one of them veterinarian meals (no meat) and it's better than good - it's hippylicious!
email me and I will send you the recipe.
I'm a Diet Coke addict. They were $4.59 a 12pk 12-18 months ago. They went from that to $4.99, to (currently) $5.49. Not that I pay those prices, I get 'em 2 for 1 on sale.
So I'm seeing a jump in prices. Not sure how much is due to corn prices though...not too much corn syrup in a Diet Coke. I'd blame gas/energy prices.
Government ruins anything it meddles with, especially agriculture. In the long history of mankind, America will not prove immune to human folly. It is not kooky to start thinking ahead in a survivalist fashion: how to produce food if the infrastructure fails. Do you have arable land? Do you have seeds appropriate for your area, fertilizer and tools? Do you have a way to ward off poachers 24/7? Now is the time to make a calm assessment, before the panic sets in.
I think that in large blocks, Tofu might make a fine small arms target.
I am seeing eggs at almost 100% price increase of late, and bread is nearly $3/loaf for most normal kinds. Milk has jumped up and down lately, about $3/gallon for 1%. Have observed 20-30% overall increases in many of the items normally on my list over the past few months. It is getting more challenging to stretch the grocery budget.
We have noticed a large increase in the price of Cheese, we used to wait for the deals Krogers would have (IIRC 2 bucks for a package of Cheddar or Swiss etc.) and buy several.
There have been no such deals in our area since before Christmas.
Eggs are way up also as well as bread.
Goat Kabob’s !
Spicy Goat BBQ on a kabob w/ veggies all broiled etc , steam some kale leaves, cut some lemons in half. Pick up a kale leave, lay the Kabob in it , wrap the leaf around it, pull out the skewer, squeeze some lemon on it and fold it up like a burrito and eat..........gosh awful good eatin whit a side of fried okra and a big glass of home brew or sun tea !!!
Good stuff !
You JUST made me HUNGRY! I’ve actually got to put a few in the freezer in a couple of weeks....Mmmmm! :-)
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