[shrinkermd]

Not good news.

[ken21]

using corn for ethanol

is not

a good idea.

[raybbr]

Orange juice at $8 /gal. Unbelievable!

[microgood]

A lot of this is due to fuel prices.

[TheSpottedOwl]

Almost 4 bucks for a 10 lb sack of potatoes. We get fresh eggs from friends. I quit buying orange juice, even the frozen concentrate is pretty expensive. Don’t even mention fresh fruit.

[rabscuttle385]

These numbers get lost in the broader inflation rate for all goods and services, which measured 2.7 for the same 12-month period. Across the economy, rising food prices were offset by falling prices for things bought at the mall: computers, cameras, clothing and shoes.

The inflation of necessities, including food, energy, and housing, is much higher than the official overall inflation rate of 2.7 percent. And people can't eat computer hard drives and camera straps.

Figures don't lie, but liars figure. In this case, the U.S. government has a vested interest in keeping COLA wage and benefits increases, which are linked to official inflation rates, low, irrespective of whether the prices of necessary goods are increasing at a faster rate.

[Diana in Wisconsin]

Oh, for Pete’s Sake!

Can’t you see the ‘Rats are gearing up for 2008? Of COURSE the economy is going to go into the toilet. How ELSE will the LibTards win? ;)

Do you, ShrinkerMD, actually DO the food shopping and meal preparation for your household? I’ve fed a family of SIX, which was TWO Adult Males, ONE Adult Female and THREE Teenaged boys for $150 a MONTH all through The Clinton Years.

Oh, yeah. Right. I forgot. Those were ‘The Best Years Ever Ever Since Time Began.’ *ROLLEYES*

ROFLMAO!

[Alouette]

Not good news.

Good news, I don't have to buy tomatoes.

[rb22982]

I work for a growing upscale grocery chain (annual sales will top 800 million this year from 600m last year). We measure food inflation at around 4.5% although some of the items have obviously gone up much more than that. Eggs are up considerably from last year but they were down last year from the year before. Our chicken prices are flat but we've noticed some of our competitors prices have gone up. Milk has seen the largest increase. One of the reasons for the larger increase in milk is it already has one of the lowest profit margins of any item in the grocery store (only about 12% vs 45% on most non-sale items) and of course it is extremely perishable. Any cost increase must be passed on almost immediately unlike some other items.

The other big cost factor increase actually started 2-3 years ago was the increased cost of delivery. It's actually leveled out for us retailers this year, but some of the price increases may have been caused by the fuel rise from last year and the year before. Since gas prices have actually dropped this year, we're not expecting any significant delivery cost increases this year or next.

[DB]

I think the better explanation is the devaluing of the dollar. It has lost substantial value over the last five years or so and prices are simply catching up with the loss in value. At least that’s my opinion after building a house for the last three years...

[Mamzelle]

Excuse me--are all egg, milk products being included? That would skew inflation figures all past reason.

Do you realize that the New Thing in a lot of produce and food products is Organic? Free-range. No antibiotics. No hormones. Boutique food.

Upscale people. Whole Foods. Fresh Market. Texas tea.

If all eggs are being included in the price of eggs, that'll also include that package of $3.50 free range eggs as well as the regular $1.50 box that most people buy--and much of this is a fairly recent development. There's a lot more variety in the average supermarket these days.

[gidget7]

Price of transporting food to market and to run farms etc, would be my first guess. Whatever it is, my monthly grocery budget has had to double!

[Floyd Rivers]

Milk goes to +/- $5.50/gal. so we look to less expensive alternative products like soy milk for coffee, breakfast, etc. Soy milk and other product prices are also on the rise b/c the fields that once grew soy beans are being shifted to corn production for ethanol and feed production... It is an interesting example of the interconnectedness of economics.

[Urbane_Guerilla]

"They cite inflation?" Bush asked, adding that, "I happen to believe the war has clouded a lot of people's sense of optimism."

I really don't blame the President for being so clueless in a small way. He doesn't go grocery shopping, nor would it make any sense for him to do so.

But anyone who buys groceries understands the sticker shock.

The President, who has never demonstrated that he is very keyed in to the understanding of every day life of most Americans, let alone Americans who conceive of themselves as "conservative," is just showing his simplistic arrogance here. The war and the price of groceries have nothing to do with each other in the mind of anyone, period.

And people's sense of optimism? Really ... oh my goodness ... is it possible to get more incoherent or clueless than that statement?

The very discouraging thought is that this President without a doubt was better to elect than Gore or Kerry. No question about it.

But the Carter, Bush, Clinton, Bush, string of presidents, a string where the word mediocre would be extravagant, exaggerated praise if used to describe them, is too much to take.

Apparently, no one ever loses by underestimating and insulting the intelligence of the American people.

[beethovenfan]

Thanks, Al Gore and enviroweenies. (But you-know-who gets the blame, of course.)

[ken21]

i was thinking about joining costco or sam’s club.

which would i get better prices at?

[AngelesCrestHighway]

But the government chuckleheads have been telling us along there’s no inflation!...what gives?

[LdSentinal]

Not good news?

What do expect when you post from McClatchey?

[finnman69]

Anyone still think the Fed will be lowering interest rates?

[brianr10]

What do you suppose food will cost in 50 years, after we add another 100 or so million people through immigration?

[NautiNurse]

Half the nation's families earn below the median family income.

The liberals will have to improve this statistic. Expect an emergency session to fix this situation.