Roon
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Thu Dec-04-08 10:01 PM
Original message |
I always heard that the price of food goes up when gas prices go up |
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Gas prices are way down now. Why doesn't the price of food go down along with it?
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Deja Q
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Thu Dec-04-08 10:06 PM
Response to Original message |
1. Growing season's over... |
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The cost of gas, et al, during the skyrocketed period has to be factored into the food.
Now that gas prices are down, food prices should follow within 6~9 months - depending on produce or type of food.
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aquart
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Thu Dec-04-08 10:08 PM
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2. Because the food you're buying now was made with the higher costs. |
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I've noticed fresh produce is coming down.
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CoffeeCat
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Thu Dec-04-08 10:10 PM
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3. Food prices are "stickier." |
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When food prices go up, it takes a lot longer for the high prices to come back down.
Companies become accustomed to charging the higher prices and they're more reluctant to reduce prices, just because the cost of some inputs go down.
Also, some large food conglomerates have "locked in" the prices they pay for grain and other inputs. They have long-term contracts and agreements, so while transportation costs may be decreasing--the prices that they pay for grain, meat, and other ingredients may not be decreasing.
I'm no expert, but that is the very little that I understand about the nature of food prices.
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Jackpine Radical
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Thu Dec-04-08 10:21 PM
Response to Reply #3 |
6. Oil has 4 vital functions in agriculture. |
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It forms the chemical bases for pesticides and fertilizers, it runs the farm equipment used to plant, tend and harvest the crops, and it fuels the delivery systems (trucks) that bring the food to you. Only the cost of the last-named of these, transportation, changes rapidly with the price of fuel. You're eating things planted, grown and harvested with high-priced oil. The farmers borrowed to pay for that expensive stuff, and need to pay off their loans, so they must charge high prices for their products.
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Roon
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Fri Dec-05-08 06:35 PM
Response to Reply #6 |
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thanks for your input! :-)
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Two Americas
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Fri Dec-05-08 07:00 PM
Response to Reply #3 |
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Edited on Fri Dec-05-08 07:01 PM by Two Americas
There is stability in food prices, relatively speaking, and that is the product of regulation and is a good thing. Were it not for that, with the current economic meltdown, we would now be seeing farm closings and famine as we did in the 30's. Thankfully, a strong system of regulation and oversight was put into place through the New Deal that protects farming from the financial industry, and so protects us from famine.
It is shocking that people today in this country are struggling to buy food. That is a function of depressed wages, and gouging in other areas devastating people's budgets - overpriced housing and utilities, which have become privatized monopolies with insufficient oversight and regulation, health care and medication costs, to name a few.
Food prices have been volatile, but that is nothing when compared to the volatility of fuel prices, or else many of us would be getting very hungry by now.
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Tangerine LaBamba
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Thu Dec-04-08 10:18 PM
Response to Original message |
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This reminded me of something I noticed today at the market.
Tuna used to come in - as I recall it - 7-1/2 oz. cans.
Now, they're 5 ounces, and they're the same price.
It never ends. Food prices are just going to keep going up because we have no alternatives.
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dysfunctional press
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Thu Dec-04-08 10:23 PM
Response to Reply #4 |
8. that's been happening to a lot of food products for quite ahile now... |
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for instance- just try finding an actual half-gallon carton of ice cream. :shrug:
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Tangerine LaBamba
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Thu Dec-04-08 10:28 PM
Response to Reply #8 |
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and coffee.
Candy bars, ha. They're a joke these days.
And I noticed that there's less tuna inside the can and more oil or water.
I said "Screw this," and went for the expensive, but really good, and fully-packed imported Italian tuna. It's so far superior to the stuff they're ripping us off for, I'll never go back.
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hendo
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Fri Dec-05-08 12:19 AM
Response to Reply #8 |
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i just bought a half gallon from the local dairy yesterday.
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dysfunctional press
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Fri Dec-05-08 01:38 PM
Response to Reply #13 |
15. try buying it a supermarket...most national brands are 1.75 quarts, and some are even 1.5 quarts. |
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does the dairy make their own? what are the ranges of flavours they make/carry?
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hendo
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Fri Dec-05-08 07:22 PM
Response to Reply #15 |
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choclate, Vanilla, mint chip, strawberry, cookies and cream, butter pecan, and a few seasonals.
I think there are more too, but i cant remember all of them right now.
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dysfunctional press
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Fri Dec-05-08 09:17 PM
Response to Reply #21 |
22. no such luxury for us- and where we live once had the highest concentration of dairies in the u.s... |
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which is probably one reason why the soil is so good in our garden. i don't even know where the nearest working dairy in the area is anymore...:shrug:
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hendo
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Sun Dec-07-08 12:34 AM
Response to Reply #22 |
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I used to live in Elmhurst 20 or so years ago. its kind of far away from you, but you should go to the Walter Peyton Steak House in Aurora sometime if you get the chance.
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Veritas_et_Aequitas
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Thu Dec-04-08 10:19 PM
Response to Original message |
5. Food prices move more slowly. |
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People can drive less, but they usually don't eat less.
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rucky
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Thu Dec-04-08 10:21 PM
Response to Original message |
7. I noticed bread's gone down. |
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and milk was down right after Thanksgiving, but it was all pretty short-dated, too.
maybe it's just because people don't shop for everyday stuff as much around the Holidays
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WHEN CRABS ROAR
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Thu Dec-04-08 10:49 PM
Response to Original message |
10. 6.3 billion people and growing. |
Roon
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Thu Dec-04-08 10:58 PM
Response to Original message |
11. Thanks for the responses, guys! |
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Edited on Thu Dec-04-08 10:59 PM by Roon
I was really wondering why food prices are still so high and your posts have given me some insight. I appreciate it!
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hendo
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Fri Dec-05-08 12:18 AM
Response to Original message |
12. most food is a commodity |
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and commodity prices are set on Wall Street. The prices through the spring have pretty much been locked in.
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davidthegnome
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Fri Dec-05-08 03:17 AM
Response to Original message |
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Or maybe lobster is an exception. I'm not sure about other States, but here in Maine the price has gone way down in my area. I'm not sure exactly how much it's gone down as my parents are the ones that buy it, but it's become more common at our house lately. To think they used to feed it to prisoners...
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crikkett
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Fri Dec-05-08 02:29 PM
Response to Original message |
16. Gas is down because shipping has all but stopped. |
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The cheap food used to come from overseas. Bookings of container ships are down something like 93%, last I heard.
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Roon
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Fri Dec-05-08 06:38 PM
Response to Reply #16 |
18. My Mother works for APL |
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as an exporter/importer. I will ask her if bookings of containers are down. If anyone would know about what is up with the container business, it would be my Mother.
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Breeze54
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Fri Dec-05-08 07:03 PM
Response to Original message |
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Edited on Fri Dec-05-08 07:04 PM by Breeze54
I asked the same question in a conversation with a fellow shopper, little old gray haired lady and her husband and she laughed and said, "Yeah right! When have prices EVER come down once they go up?!"
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