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Economy
Food inflation to hit shelves by the fall
2014-05-15

Unexpectedly...
U.S. producer prices recorded their largest increase in 1-1/2 years in April as food prices surged, in a potential sign inflation pressures may be creeping up.

The Labor Department said on Wednesday its producer price index rose 0.6 percent, the biggest gain since September 2012. That built on a March increase that was nearly as large.

The department revamped it PPI series at the start of the year to include services and construction. Since then, it has been surprisingly volatile, largely because of big swings in prices received for trade services.

Still, economists, who had expected only a 0.2 percent gain, saw the latest rise as an indication that price pressure may be building. Officials at the Federal Reserve have long worried that inflation was running too low.
Posted by:badanov

#27  Meanwhile corn harvests for biofuel (spit) are at an all time high. also to be fair, the huge increase in fracking and oil by rail pipeline resulted in grain being delayed by 3 weeks or more, as well as delays in the class 1 RRs being able to backhaul grain empties to the elevators. The backlogs are finally just about all gone.
Posted by: USN, Ret.   2014-05-15 22:29  

#26  Higher food prices is a feature in the Obama Tyranny's plan. The higher food prices will force more people to apply for food stamps snapping that government slave collar around their neck.
Posted by: Silentbrick   2014-05-15 21:31  

#25  However, do look on the bright side. Adjusted for inflation, prices have been stable!
Posted by: Anguper Hupomosing9418    2014-05-15 21:03  

#24  Then there's this:
Young men earn much less now than in 1973
Check out these sad statistics for the percentage change in men's median income from the year it peaked to 2012 (adjusted for inflation):

Ages 25-34. Down 27 percent. Peaked in 1973.
Ages 35-44. Down 19 percent. Peaked in 1973.
Ages 45-54. Down 17 percent. Peaked in 1999.
Ages 55-64. Down 13 percent. Peaked in 2003.
Posted by: Anguper Hupomosing9418    2014-05-15 20:30  

#23  Procopius2k----USDA is arming up for this threat, which we all though was one big joke, but it's not.

Posted by: Alaska Paul   2014-05-15 19:11  

#22  Let me know when you're in the area Fred, I'll arrange a tour.
Posted by: Besoeker   2014-05-15 19:00  

#21  All part of the planning to deal with the zombie apocalypse.
Posted by: Fred   2014-05-15 18:33  

#20  ....and of course, the Agriculture Department

Dept of Agriculture Orders Submachine Guns with 30 Round Magazines WTF

Concerned their agents will be attacked by bovines with Mad Cow Disease or zombie bears or ravenous feral hogs? There is a funded department in the government already to handle those who jump the reservation national forests and wetlands.
Posted by: Procopius2k   2014-05-15 16:58  

#19  TO hit?
Posted by: Barbara   2014-05-15 15:40  

#18  Actually, I think the proper answer is "all of the above". My wife and I have noticed the changes in package size and content across the board, as well as price increases per pound. Our food expenditures have gone up about fifteen percent, and we're actually eating less. Some of the price increase is due to drought, freezes last year that killed fruit blossoms, etc. Beef prices have almost doubled, and even fish is a third higher than it used to be. A lot of the increase in prices can be attributed to increase in government regulation, including Obamacare, the EPA, the FDA, and of course, the Agriculture Department.
Posted by: Old Patriot   2014-05-15 15:19  

#17  Not much wheat left to harvest here in the Wheat State. Cattle herds are at a 29 year low. Pork industry hit hard by a virus.
Posted by: bman   2014-05-15 15:08  

#16  Hope you were looking forward to your government mandated diet. Posted by: AlanC



Posted by: Besoeker   2014-05-15 12:52  

#15  the drought in California and Brazil and a disappointing 2013 for soybeans has already moved prices up quite a bit

however, the Mexican vegetable harvest is expected to be up and, assuming a decent summer growing season for the grains, the inflation should be over by the fall -- coffee and meat will probably remain high well into the winter
Posted by: lord garth   2014-05-15 12:51  

#14  If you (rightly) think of QE as a tax (On Savers i.e. investors) then inflation is mainly "tax" driven.
Posted by: Bright Pebbles   2014-05-15 12:43  

#13  Everyone here is correct. Prices have been skyrocketing ever since Zero showed up. It's going to get worse.

In November the employer mandates for ACA kick in. Healthcare costs for employers, especially small business, will jump a minimum of 8% right off the bat. All other healthcare costs jump too.

All of these costs will impact the entire "food chain" from field to table which will ratchet up all the increases just like compound interest.

Hope you were looking forward to your government mandated diet.
Posted by: AlanC   2014-05-15 12:35  

#12  Bet you can't guess what categories of folks food inflation fails to dramatically impact.
Posted by: Besoeker   2014-05-15 12:35  

#11  Food inflation to hit shelves by the fall of 2008

FIFY

It's call quantitative easing (aka debasing the currency). Unless there is a tech breakthrough. most commodities stay pretty constant against each other in value. It's when the government creates a lot of monetary units (coin, paper, digital fiat) without value to back it that these things run their usual pattern. See-Economic Creationism (aka Magical Money Tree).
Posted by: Procopius2k   2014-05-15 12:32  

#10  It's a con.

As prices rise and fall they increase/decrease the goods weighting in the notional basket.

However price changes are cyclical.

The net effect is to blunt inflation as higher prices tend to have a bigger weighting when they fall, and lower weighting when they rise.
Posted by: Bright Pebbles   2014-05-15 12:30  

#9  Food prices at the store have in several cases doubled since 2008. Obama media ignored that along with any other bad news. Yesterday stopped in at McDonalds for a fish sandwich. Price was 150% of what it was three years ago. The slice of fish is now the size of a cracker.
Posted by: Bubba Graiting8281   2014-05-15 12:20  

#8  I used to get coffee in 32 oz. bags; the most recent one was 22 oz., same price on both bags.
Posted by: Raj   2014-05-15 12:02  

#7  They don't hire teenagers to work the fast food restaurants anymore in southern California. Now the fast food workers are all, uh, immigrants. Yeah, immigrants, that's right. And they fully expect to be able to buy a house and raise a family on the money they make flipping burgers at McDonalds.
Posted by: Ebbang Uluque6305   2014-05-15 11:57  

#6  Used to be you could get a five pound bag of sugar. Now it's four pounds.
Posted by: Ebbang Uluque6305   2014-05-15 11:53  

#5  Increased taxes are part of it, but watch what happens when that booger picking worth $5/hr high schooler gets a hike to ten tin, ironically the name of the butcher in the movie The Crow.
Posted by: swksvolFF   2014-05-15 11:51  

#4  I'm in agreement with Darth; looking at fast food places some joints I have ordered what I have always ordered and come away hungry all too shortly or the ingredients are packed with fillers like what the yum! bell of tacos is doing.

Also going into it will be the increased costs of production and transportation. Increased health and transport regs will choke distribution.
Posted by: swksvolFF   2014-05-15 11:42  

#3  NO, the cost incease is all taxes, you pay and the Giverment reaps.
Posted by: Redneck Jim   2014-05-15 11:37  

#2  Companies have been "hiding" it by making smaller packaging and charging the same amount. They can't go any smaller so now the costs will have to go up.
Posted by: DarthVader   2014-05-15 11:17  

#1  I believe we've had food inflation for some time now. The Labor Department is just now admitting it.
Posted by: Deacon Blues   2014-05-15 10:51  

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