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A father speaks out about the rising cost of food.
A father speaks out about the rising cost of food and the growing challenge of feeding his family.
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Price jump worst since '91 on record gas, higher food
Record gas and higher food prices drove inflation to the biggest annual jump since 1991 and fanned fears about growing pressures on consumers.
The Labor Department reading on Wednesday is another sign, along with mounting job losses and declining home prices, of the economic pain suffered by Americans as prices outstrip increases in paychecks.
The latest reading came as Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, in testimony on Capitol Hill, was warning that inflation could pose a major drag on the economy for the rest of this year.
Retail prices were up 5% annually in June, the biggest 12-month change since May 1991 - an annual figure that was skewed by the surge in gasoline prices related to the first Gulf War.
A separate Labor Department report showed the average hourly wage up only 3.4% over the same 12-month period, meaning the typical American is having trouble keeping up with the price increases.
"The government report confirms what every consumer in America has known for months now: inflation is soaring and it's having an adverse impact on the economy," said Rich Yamarone, director of economic research at Argus Research.
On a monthly basis, the Consumer Price Index was up 1.1% in June, after a 0.6% rise in May. Economists surveyed by Briefing.com had been looking for only a 0.7% rise.
Energy prices were up 6.6% in the month, led by a 10.1% jump in gas prices. That left gasoline prices up nearly a third from a year earlier. Record gas and higher food prices drove inflation to the biggest annual jump since 1991 and fanned fears about growing pressures on co... more -
Restaurants feel mid-market pinch
In a slowdown, economists say to expect the squeeze in the market's middle: for Britain's recently fast-growing restaurants, it's starting with lunch.
Chef Pascal Aussignac, who has been serving Londoners at the chic Club Gascon for almost a decade, says rising inflation, housing and food prices are pinching his customers' midday purses.
"People are eating more at their desk, they've cut down their budget," he said. "Only senior people are lunching at a restaurant ... We feel the credit crunch at lunchtime."
Chefs in the U.K.'s 24 billion pound industry, such as Michel Roux, owner of London's Le Gavroche restaurant, have seen the price of a fillet of beef rise to 26 pounds, from 19 in January, Roux told Reuters.
"I am taking a bitter pill," Roux said on the sidelines of a food festival, Taste London, where elegantly dressed women in wide-brimmed hats sipped champagne and sampled oysters.
But analysts say his Mayfair restaurant -- which charges an average of 80 pounds per head -- and other up-market sites where customers don't need to look at their pay cheques ahead of a decision to dine are not on the front line.
It is the mid-market tier, charging between 20 and 30 pounds per head and mainly set in provincial Britain where the prospect of tougher times and rising prices are prompting ordinary people to eat more at home.
"It's a sector that's going to have a really tough time," said Peter Baldwin, a partner at law firm Jones Day, which specialises in debt restructurings and insolvencies. "The first bit of expenses that people cut are the personal expenses, like restaurants." In a slowdown, economists say to expect the squeeze in the market's middle: for Britain's recently fast-growing restaurants, it's star... more -
Cocoa prices at over 20-year high
LONDON/NEW YORK (Reuters) - Cocoa prices surged to their highest level in over 20 years on Wednesday, adding extra pressure to global food prices, after reports of a possible supply squeeze in the world's top grower, Ivory Coast.
A report by independent analyst Hans Kilian, seen as bullish on Ivorian supplies, was the initial trigger for a fund and investor-driven surge in U.S. futures to a 28-year high of $3,122 a metric ton.
In London, benchmark second-month cocoa futures hit a 22-year peak of 1,682 pounds ($3,277) a metric ton, before closing at 1,658 pounds, up 33 in brisk volume of 5,641 lots.
Analysts said cocoa prices could rise further due to robust global demand and a tight supply outlook.
"We haven't been at these nose-bleed prices in years," said Ralph Preston, futures analyst with HeritageWestFutures.com in San Diego. "Especially with that fundamental news coming out, that's going to really light a fire under this."
Jack Scoville, a vice-president for brokers the Price Group in Chicago, said the next key price target for second-month U.S. futures would be $3,140 a metric ton.
Benchmark ICE September futures settled up $72, or 2.4 percent, at $3,098 per metric ton, in dealings from $3,050 to $3,122, a high for the second-month dating back to February 1980.
Analyst Kilian, who is highly regarded in the cocoa market, has frequently moved cocoa futures prices with his West Africa crop reports, which he distributes to private clients only. LONDON/NEW YORK (Reuters) - Cocoa prices surged to their highest level in over 20 years on Wednesday, adding extra pressure to global ... more -
Food prices create $6bn deficit every year
The head of the World Bank says poor countries will need some $6 billion in food aid every year because of rising food prices.
Robert Zoellick says he expects food prices to stay above 2004 levels at least through 2012. He says energy prices also will remain high and volatile.
Zoellick says the World Food Program, which feeds the world's hungry, requires $6 billion. But this year an additional $3.5 billion is needed for short-term safety net projects in 50 countries. The head of the World Bank says poor countries will need some $6 billion in food aid every year because of rising food prices. ... more -
G8 leaders feast on 13 courses after discussing world food shortages
G8 delegates enjoy the working lunch, which included white asparagus and truffle soup and peach compote
(im just a sucker for titles) G8 delegates enjoy the working lunch, which included white asparagus and truffle soup and peach compote ... more -
Food crisis could destroy progress in Africa
LONDON, England (AP) -- Rising global food prices threaten to destroy years of economic progress in Africa and drive 100 million people into poverty, a high-profile international panel said Monday.
Real progress in Africa now risks being undone by the food crisis, says a high-profile international panel.
The Africa Progress Panel also said wealthy countries are likely to fail in their promise to deliver billions more in aid to the continent by 2010.
"Africa has made substantial progress in recent years," said former U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan, who chairs the panel.
"However, the current food crisis threatens to reverse many of the hard-fought gains that have been made," he said.
"With 100 million people on the brink of abject poverty, the cost of food will not be measured in the price of wheat and rice, but in the rising number of infant and child deaths across Africa."
The panel was formed last year to focus world leaders' attention on the continent and monitor progress toward meeting ambitious aid commitments. Its 11 members include former British Prime Minister Tony Blair and anti-poverty activist Bob Geldof.
In its annual report, the panel called on leaders of the Group of Eight industrialized nations to "urgently fund shortfalls against their targets to double assistance to Africa by 2010."
The July 2005 G-8 summit in Gleneagles, Scotland, garnered commitments to increase foreign aid by $50 billion a year by 2010 -- with half of that going directly to Africa -- and to cancel the debt of the most heavily indebted poor nations.
The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development reported in April that foreign aid by major donor countries slumped in 2007 as debt-relief plans tapered off and amid a global economic downturn in Japan and some other rich nations.
The Africa Progress Panel concluded that despite increases in assistance by some countries, "the G-8's commitment to double assistance to Africa by 2010 is not likely to be fulfilled." It said current commitments fell $40 billion short of the Gleneagles target.
The panel called on the G-8 countries -- U.S., Japan, Russia, Germany, France, Britain, Italy and Canada -- to tackle the food crisis and promote trade, infrastructure and governance reforms when they meet in Hokkaido, Japan, on July 7-9.
LONDON, England (AP) -- Rising global food prices threaten to destroy years of economic progress in Africa and drive 100 million peopl... more -
Honey bee shortage could drive up food prices
The planet is doomed.
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McCain's Easy Pass
Great analysis of how McCain showed he's a lightweight on economic policy and not such a straight talker at his recent NYC town hall meeting. Great analysis of how McCain showed he's a lightweight on economic policy and not such a straight talker at his recent NYC town hall m... more
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Zimbabwe suspends aid operations
Zimbabwe's government has indefinitely suspended all field work by aid groups and non-governmental organisations.
Social Welfare Minister Nicholas Goche accused several of "breaching the terms and conditions of their registration", in a written notice sent to the groups.
Earlier, police detained a group of US and UK diplomats for several hours as they investigated political violence there, US ambassador James McGee said.
The US and UK demanded an explanation for the "unjust and outrageous" move.
,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,And Mugabe does this to his people as he stands before the summit and blames the West for all of his economic woe's. Zimbabwe's government has indefinitely suspended all field work by aid groups and non-governmental organisations. ... more -
Food Crisis: Should the US Go on a Diet?
In this very interesting clip we hear what is going on at the current summit in Rome.
Finally the focus is on supporting local farmers world wide--stop dumping subsidized agriculture into the developing world.
FAO, Global Call to Action against Poverty and Vandana Shiva speak of what needs to be done right now to resolve this crisis.
Lack of food is a man made problem and women and children are the ones who suffer the consequences. In this very interesting clip we hear what is going on at the current summit in Rome. ... more -
Summit targets global food crisis
A key UN-sponsored summit is set to open in Rome aimed at addressing the problem of soaring global food prices.
But many observers have so far focused on Zimbabwe's Robert Mugabe, whose presence at the summit has been called "obscene" by the UK and Australia. A key UN-sponsored summit is set to open in Rome aimed at addressing the problem of soaring global food prices. ... more -
How Wal-Mart keeps prices low, even while prices everywhere rise
With gas, grain, and dairy prices exploding, you'd think the biggest seller of corn flakes and Cocoa Puffs would be getting hit by rising food costs. But Wal-Mart has temporarily rolled back prices on hundreds of food items by as much as 30% this year. How? By pressuring vendors to take costs out of the supply chain...
1. Shrink the goods
2. Cut out the middleman
3. Go locovore
Is this cutthroat capitalism at its worst or an attempt to help consumers deal with rising prices? With gas, grain, and dairy prices exploding, you'd think the biggest seller of corn flakes and Cocoa Puffs would be getting hit by ris... more -
As food prices soar, so do sales of Spam
"Sales of Spam - that much maligned meat - are rising as consumers are turning more to lunch meats and other lower-cost foods to extend their already stretched food budgets."
Also for fun, the original Monty Python SPAM skit for those unacquainted:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ODshB09FQ8w
"Sales of Spam - that much maligned meat - are rising as consumers are turning more to lunch meats and other lower-cost foods to exten... more -
Get Used To High Food Prices, Water Shortages in US
Shocked by rising food prices? Get used to it -- and be ready for water shortages, too, says a sweeping new scientific report rounding up likely effects of climate change on the United States' land, water and farms over the next half-century.
Some effects already can be felt, says the report released Tuesday, which synthesizes results of more than 1,000 individual studies.
And it's not just humans' food that's at risk, said witnesses at a congressional field hearing in Seattle on Tuesday. An intense and sudden acidification of the Pacific resulting from climate change presages a possible breakdown in the marine food web, experts said at the hearing, headed by Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash.
"This is not a problem of tomorrow but a problem for today," said Rep. Jay Inslee, D-Wash., noting that nearly 10 percent of protein in the human diet is from the oceans. "It just scares the heck out of me."
The U.S. Department of Agriculture report cataloged effects thought by scientists to be likely over the next 25 to 50 years on agriculture, land and water.
Even if greenhouse gas production stopped now, climate change already has been set in motion, said the review by 38 scientists, mostly from the federal government and universities. The panel included some of the nation's leading climate researchers.
"We have already observed the consequences," said David Schimel of the National Ecological Observatory Network, one of three lead authors. "We have a very clearly observed trend toward earlier snowmelt and more winter rain, both of which greatly complicate water management."
Shocked by rising food prices? Get used to it -- and be ready for water shortages, too, says a sweeping new scientific report rounding... more -
Crisis talks on global food prices
World leaders are to meet next week for urgent talks aimed at preventing tens of millions of the world’s poor dying of hunger as a result of soaring food prices.
The summit in Rome is expected to pledge immediate aid to poor countries threatened by malnutrition as well as charting longer-term strategies for improving food production. World leaders are to meet next week for urgent talks aimed at preventing tens of millions of the world’s poor dying of hunger as a res... more -
Mexico's poor get food cash boost
The Mexican government is to give its poorest citizens a monthly cash payment of 120 pesos ($11.55; £5.85) to help them cope with rising food prices.
The news came a day after the country said it would cut tariffs on imported crops such as corn, wheat and rice.
In a further sign of the impact of rising food and fuel costs, inflation in Vietnam jumped to 25% in May, the highest rate for 10 years.
Average food costs have risen by 42.4% in a year, the Statistics Office said.
Growing demand
In Mexico, official figures show consumer prices rose by 4.55% - the fastest rate for three years - in the 12 months to 30 April, led by increases in the cost of tomatoes, chicken and cooking oil.
Growing demand from fast-expanding countries such as India and China has been blamed for spiralling food prices, along with record fuel costs and the use of grain to produce bio-fuels.
Governments around the world are under pressure to intervene to help the poorest cope with the sharp food price rises.
There have been public demonstrations about food prices in a number of countries including Egypt and South Africa.
Mexico's monthly cash payment, which will go to 26 million people in the Latin American country, equates to just over twice the national daily minimum wage of 50 pesos.
The government faced street protests last year when the price of tortillas doubled.
Rice restrictions
Vietnam has seen the price of rice, its staple food, jump 67.8% in the last 12 months, according to government figures.
One of Vietnam's most important sources of imported rice, Cambodia, stopped exporting the grain in March.
It is one of a number of rice-producing countries, including India, Egypt and Indonesia, to have either banned or restricted exports in recent months to secure supply for domestic customers.
On Tuesday, Cambodia was set to resume exports of rice after its two-month ban ended.
Prime Minister Hun Sen said only rice that was not needed for domestic consumption could be sold for overseas consumption until the new harvesting season began in December.
Last year, that amounted to 1.6 million tons of milled rice. The Mexican government is to give its poorest citizens a monthly cash payment of 120 pesos ($11.55; £5.85) to help them cope with risi... more -
Crisis talks on global food prices
World leaders will meet next week to discuss how to stop the deaths of millions through hunger as food prices soar. The historic price spikes in the cost of staple foods has caused unrest and riots in 36 countries this year, with more expected to follow as experts predict the food import bill for developing countries to rise 40%.
The summit, hosted by the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation will discuss establishing a global food fund and a set of international guidelines for cultivating biofuels, which have been blamed for diverting various resources away from food production.
Gordon Brown has suggested that decreasing the subsidies paid to European and American farmers, which amounts to $1bn a day would go a long way to lowering food prices and supporting farmers in the third world. $1bn sure seems a lot of money subsidise western farmers when millions cannot eat.
FAO's assistant director general, Hafez Ghanem said "Food is no longer the cheap commodity that it once was. Rising food prices are bound to worsen the already unacceptable level of food deprivation suffered by 854 million people ... We are facing the risk that the number of hungry will increase by many more millions of people." World leaders will meet next week to discuss how to stop the deaths of millions through hunger as food prices soar. The historic pric... more -
New Trend in Biofuels Has New Risks
In the past year, as the diversion of food crops like corn and palm to make biofuels has helped to drive up food prices, investors and politicians have begun promoting newer, so-called second-generation biofuels as the next wave of green energy. These, made from non-food crops like reeds and wild grasses, would offer fuel without the risk of taking food off the table, they said.
But now, biologists and botanists are warning that they, too, may bring serious unintended consequences. Most of these newer crops are what scientists label invasive species — that is, weeds — that have an extraordinarily high potential to escape biofuel plantations, overrun adjacent farms and natural land, and create economic and ecological havoc in the process, they now say.
At a United Nations meeting in Bonn, Germany, on Tuesday, scientists from the Global Invasive Species Program, the Nature Conservancy and the International Union for Conservation of Nature, as well as other groups, presented a paper with a warning about invasive species.
“Some of the most commonly recommended species for biofuels production are also major invasive alien species,” the paper says, adding that these crops should be studied more thoroughly before being cultivated in new areas.
Controlling the spread of such plants could prove difficult, the experts said, producing “greater financial losses than gains.” The International Union for Conservation of Nature encapsulated the message like this: “Don’t let invasive biofuel crops attack your country.”
To reach their conclusions, the scientists compared the list of the most popular second-generation biofuels with the list of invasive species and found an alarming degree of overlap. They said little evaluation of risk had occurred before planting.
“With biofuels, there’s always a hurry,” said Geoffrey Howard, an invasive species expert with the International Union for Conservation of Nature. “Plantations are started by investors, often from the U.S. or Europe, so they are eager to generate biofuels within a couple of years and also, as you might guess, they don’t want a negative assessment.”
The biofuels industry said the risk of those crops morphing into weed problems is overstated, noting that proposed biofuel crops, while they have some potential to become weeds, are not plants that inevitably turn invasive.
“There are very few plants that are ‘weeds,’ full stop,” said Willy De Greef, incoming secretary general of EuropaBio, an industry group. “You have to look at the biology of the plant and the environment where you’re introducing it and ask, are there worry points here?” He said that biofuel farmers would inevitably introduce new crops carefully because they would not want growth they could not control.
Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/21/science/earth/21biofu... In the past year, as the diversion of food crops like corn and palm to make biofuels has helped to drive up food prices, investors and... more -
Food price have greatest monthly increase in 20 years
Rising global grain prices helped spark the largest increase in monthly food costs in nearly 20 years, as consumers paid more in April for cereals, baked goods, and the dairy, meat and other animal products that rely on feedstocks, the government reported today.
"Food prices have risen 6.1 percent in the past three months on a seasonally adjusted annual basis. The one-month rise between March and April of 0.9 percent was the biggest since January 1990," according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The rise in prices covered all categories of food but was most severe among such staple goods as grains and oils -- goods where inflation has touched off food riots in some less developed countries and led to concerns about supply shortages.
Rising global grain prices helped spark the largest increase in monthly food costs in nearly 20 years, as consumers paid more in April... more
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Food Prices
