Posted on 01/23/2014 11:22:27 PM PST by Nachum
Submitted by Michael Snyder of The Economic Collapse blog,
If the extreme drought in the western half of the country keeps going, the food supply problems that we are experiencing right now are only going to be the tip of the iceberg. As you will see below, the size of the U.S. cattle herd has dropped to a 61 year low, and organic food shortages are being reported all over the nation. Surprisingly cold weather and increasing demand for organic food have both been a factor, but the biggest threat to the U.S. food supply is the extraordinary drought which has had a relentless grip on the western half of the country. If you check out the U.S. Drought Monitor, you can see that drought conditions currently stretch from California all the way to the heart of Texas. In fact, the worst drought in the history of the state of California is happening right now. And considering the fact that the rest of the nation is extremely dependent on produce grown in California and cattle raised in the western half of the U.S., this should be of great concern to all of us.
A local Fox News report that was featured on the Drudge Report entitled "Organic food shortage hits US" has gotten quite a bit of attention. The following is an excerpt from that article...
Since Christmas, cucumbers supplies from Florida have almost ground to a halt and the Mexican supply is coming but it's just not ready yet.
And as the basic theory of economics goes, less supply drives up prices.
Take organic berries for example:
There was a strawberry shortage a couple weeks back and prices spiked.
Experts say the primary reasons for the shortages are weather and demand.
(Excerpt) Read more at zerohedge.com ...
How's your eagle doing??
Aside from being too expensive, what is wrong with organic food? I eat some of it.
Are there people who would prefer to eat foods laced with cancer causing agents?
This is not a political issue or at least it should not be.
Oh My God! Organic food shortages!
We must all come together and grow bean sprouts in our back yards and send them to the west coast to feed those suffering and starving liberals and greenies.
I would send a can of Campbell’s soup but they would run from it like a load of kriptonite.
It has been dry for several years west of the Mississip’ but that said our herd is back to near normal levels after many years.
“Another problem I think he failed to mention is the aging of our farmers. Offspring raised on farms are and have been leaving for years, not following in the footsteps of their forefathers. “
Yo. Child of a rancher who left the place, if temporarily, to make a living. Had to move “to town.” Don’t necessarily like it but it was economic reality and my fondest dream is to go back home at some point and try to pay the bills. Didn’t leave because I wanted to, but, because I pretty much had to since small-to-medium farming/ranching don’t pay today.
Gaining Ground: A Story of Farmers' Markets, Local Food, and Saving the Family Farm
"One fateful day in 1996, after discovering that five freight cars' worth of glittering corn have reaped a tiny profit of $18.16, young Forrest Pritchard vows to save his family's farm. What ensues--through hilarious encounters with all manner of livestock and colorful local characters--is a crash course in sustainable agriculture."
'Regular' folks, with no farm land, should start up the old Victory Garden concept.
Nothing is wrong with it.
It's not too expensive either, as evidenced by the shortage, it's probably under priced.
I'll prefer, and seek out, the inorganic foods myself.
BTW, organics are going to remain a food of the elites, as it is, and will continue to be, impossible to feed the world using organic methods.
There aren’t any organic food shortages around here. We have more than we need, which is none.
A recent sudden blizzard in SD killed 60,000 head of cattle. It’s gonna take a while to build that up again.
ROFL!!!
Telling me that adding carcinogens to naturally occurring carcinogens is not a bad thing is an odd stance to take.
I personally witnessed the loss of thousands of cattle when the early blizzard hit South Dakota last fall. 1/5th of the entire cattle herd in So. Dak. were lost, not including horses and other animals. It was not a pretty sight and devastated hundreds of ranchers who may never be able to rebound.
It won’t be long when all of us wanting a steak will be paying the $100 price odumbo’s once paid for theirs. Just wait!
>> Organic food is the second biggest hoax ever perpetrated on the public, after global warming.
The really hilarious thing is, in all my nearly sixty years of living, I have never eaten a single mouthful of food that WASN’T organic.
(If you know what I mean, and I think you do.)
Better living through (organic) chemistry!
Eagle is fine. Reason he was hanging around was there was a dead deer up above the irrigation ditch. He was perched there for the purpose of guarding his dinner as hawks and crows didn’t get too much of the fine pickings.
The current drought has been going on in our area for about 15 years and we are heading into our fourth year of severe and exceptional drought; last year was the worst in 120 years of recorded NM history. Over half of the cattle in the state were sold due to the drought. We sold seventy percent of our herd in 2011 and are now back up to 50% as a result of our drought management planning.
We also raise lean grass fed all natural beef. No antibiotics, hormones, or chemicals. Not organic by legal definition! It is a growing niche market and we sell direct to customers(over 400 so far). We are barely able to keep up with demand and will increase our stocking rate as the drought eases.
Once a year we have a customer appreciation day and our customers get to see the cattle and our grazing management program. Great relationship with our customers and we listen to them. If farmers and ranchers want to stay in business, they have to think outside of the box.
Government is of course a big problem; we are dealing with endangered species act and all the bs the enviros and bureaucrats can bring down on us. We have learned to deal with it, or at least establish legal standing, by working with local governments and making comments on the proposed listings and working through the NEPA process. But thats another story
Yes, it is, sort of. It’s the wealthy section of the Des Moines MSA, along with Urbandale, Clive, and a few other suburbs. Must be a recent development. When I worked at the unemployment office there, I had a very different clientele than downtown Des Moines.
With the proliferation of food stamps, it looks like a lot more people are buying beef these days.
“There was a strawberry shortage a couple weeks back and prices spiked. “
I predict strawberry prices will crash towards the end of April and early May.
When 99.99% of the known carcinogens are natural, and the carcinogenesis of the additives is highly speculative, and they help prevent growth of even more carcinogenic natural compounds, it’s a very easy stance to take. Aflatoxin is one of the most cancer-causing substances known to man, and it’s 100% natural.
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