Many parts of America, long considered the breadbasket of the world, are now confronting a once unthinkable phenomenon: food rationing. Major retailers in New York, in areas of New England, and on the West Coast are limiting purchases of flour, rice, and cooking oil as demand outstrips supply. There are also anecdotal reports that some consumers are hoarding grain stocks.
At a Costco Warehouse in Mountain View, Calif., yesterday, shoppers grew frustrated and occasionally uttered expletives as they searched in vain for the large sacks of rice they usually buy. “Where’s the rice?” an engineer from Palo Alto, Calif., Yajun Liu, said. “You should be able to buy something like rice. This is ridiculous.” The bustling store in the heart of Silicon Valley usually sells four or five varieties of rice to a clientele largely of Asian immigrants, but only about half a pallet of Indian-grown Basmati rice was left in stock. A 20-pound bag was selling for $15.99.
“You can’t eat this every day. It’s too heavy,” a health care executive from Palo Alto, Sharad Patel, grumbled as his son loaded two sacks of the Basmati into a shopping cart. “We only need one bag but I’m getting two in case a neighbor or a friend needs it,” the elder man said.
The Patels seemed headed for disappointment, as most Costco members were being allowed to buy only one bag. Moments earlier, a clerk dropped two sacks back on the stack after taking them from another customer who tried to exceed the one-bag cap.
An employee at the Costco store in Queens said there were no restrictions on rice buying, but limits were being imposed on purchases of oil and flour. Internet postings attributed some of the shortage at the retail level to bakery owners who flocked to warehouse stores when the price of flour from commercial suppliers doubled.
The curbs and shortages are being tracked with concern by survivalists who view the phenomenon as a harbinger of more serious trouble to come. “The number of reports I’ve been getting from readers who have seen signs posted with limits has increased almost exponentially, I’d say in the last three to five weeks.”
Spiking food prices have led to riots in recent weeks in Haiti, Indonesia, and several African nations. India recently banned export of all but the highest quality rice, and Vietnam blocked the signing of new contract for foreign rice sales.
Forbes reports the price of oil at $117.00 / barrel today.
Update:Japan’s hunger becomes a dire warning for other nations
According to one government poll, 80% of Japanese are frightened about what the future holds for their food supply.
Last week, as the prices of wheat and barley continued their relentless climb, the Japanese Government discovered it had exhausted its ¥230 billion ($A2.37 billion) budget for the grains with two months remaining. It was forced to call on an emergency ¥55 billion reserve to ensure it could continue feeding the nation.”This was the first time the Government has had to take such drastic action since the war,” said Akio Shibata, an expert on food imports, who warned the Agriculture Ministry two years ago that Japan would have to cut back drastically on its sophisticated diet if it did not become more self-sufficient
Pardon me i have to go
hoard some foodbuy some groceries.Why are we seeing small shortages here in the US? Economics!
The American farmer can make more money selling his crops overseas than he can here in the US.
http://tinyurl.com/4xwwxs
“Poor wheat harvests in Australia and parts of Europe and the U.S. have caused China and other Asian countries to buy up more American crops, which are especially attractive because of the weak U.S. dollar. At the same time, the American crop is shrinking because of federal incentives to grow corn for ethanol. And skyrocketing gas prices make it costlier to get any wheat to market.”
It’s time go get our heads out of our backsides and realize that Ethanol isn’t a workable solution.
Well until last week Thailand used to export rice, but now by law that is illegal in order to feed their own people. A very anti-capitalist free market over regulated position to take if you ask the ne0-con knuckle draggers here abouts.
I think California still has a large rice export component as the world’s largest exporter of food==unless Anheiswer-Busch is using it all to make beer and spirits?
Wait for the coming collapse of all ocean fisheries–sure to come way before other world wide pollution calamities like global warming.
It will be fun to see who everyone blames.
Thanks for the great investment tip.
Buy rice futures, now.
Let’s blame those greedy rice CEO’s. We need a congressional investigation, right after they finish the baseball steroid investigation.
No shortages as long as they don’t implement price controls.
I don’t see how a low supply of foreign rice is much of an issue.
#6. What about oil and flour? Do you even bother to read the articles?
Farm land that once was used for a wide range of crops is converting to corn for ethanol.
Stupid Stupid Stupid.
I’m all for independence from foreign oil but not at the cost of my kid’s morning Cheerios.
I’ll repeat here one of my favorite historic/economic/neo-con factoids:
During the potato famines of the 1800’s in Ireland leading to the starvation deaths of millions, the English absentee free-market capitalists were growing and exporting wheat to England.
Nothings changed.
Lucky me I have at least 3+ months of groceries stored as fat. All I need to live is vitamins and coffee.
Food shortages will lead to food riots.
This can only be good news to those of us anxious to see a revolution.
#11–OFTLO==so my historic note at #9 was not informative huh?
In general, food riots result in starvation. Political change should come way before riots in the streets.
I’m sad.
We covered food shortages in the Depression Era, remember? Subsistance hunting nearly wiped out all the native wild life.
Well there’s plenty of stray cats to feed people for a couple of months, anyhow. Or to use as dog food.
#11 – First, as a rule, I don’t click on your links. They scare me.
Second… There is no second… I just like the idea of a revolution…
In my fantasy revolution, I manage to sever Sean Hannity’s head and use it as a hood ornament.
#13 Phillep
Subsistance hunting nearly wiped out all the native wild life.
That sounds ominous. Also sounds like BS. Where has native wild life nearly been wiped out? Around here (Western NY state), it’s tough to plant a reasonable garden. The rabbits strip it. Driving at dusk and dawn requires strict attention so as not to hit a deer or wild turkey. Pheasants were a problem until the red fox population exploded. Black and brown bears have been migrating further north.
I will admit, I haven’t seen a moose or and elk in a while.
We just think there’s a food shortage, since everyone has the friggin MUNCHIES after 420 day.
#14. Your a great American OFTLO. Just don’t touch the hair…..
I did a short google on worldwide food shortage and nothing real determinative showed up. Did catch articles on rice shortages, grain shortages, water shortages, oil shortages and such. I guess that’s why I said “short google” rather than “quick google?”
So I switched to find just raw data. Seems California Rice Production has increased each year at least as long as 2007? Don’t know about 2008.
Well, this is how it happens isn’t it? Population under stress? It should correct this time and then wobble back and forth getting worse at each gyration.
So, lets get out there are attack the abortion mills and cry for every baby not born.
Pure crap!!! there are no food shortages I just Tom Thumb Page in Dallas it had more food than I could carry, not a single shelf empty and actually they had some displays blocking the isles. Some little known (who the hell is the New York sun)I personally never heard of until this article. I do know personally my cousin in west Texas (who is a farmer ) had a truly bumper crop his cotton crop was the highest in history for him 4 bales to the acre in cotton (3 bales is unheard of ) he got stinking rich on his corn and maize last year both crops produced great yields.
someone show me where this food shortage is other that in the mind of the tool who wanted to have his 15 min of fame while trying to scare the lemmings out there
[Reading is fundamental….Start with this link – ed]
http://tinyurl.com/3fsehj
#19==Pmitchell–I just checked my own pantry and there is no rice or beans. If it weren’t for macaroni and cheese, I’d have nothing to eat tonight.
For those of you ON the Corn wagon…
I hope you know that the USA supplies about 1/3 of the worlds food. Mostly Rice and grains..
IF’ those nations would INVEST into there own nations, and GROW their OWN crops, need to FEED their OWN people.. We wouldnt really have much of a problem.
FOR those people THINKING that farmers can sell DIRECt to any nation….IT DONT HAPPEN. the WTC controls that.
Like we didn’t see this coming.
I was pretty surprised at this headline actually. Was just at the store today and plenty of rice, flour and whatnot on the shelves. But then I live in the Midwest.
But then we’re lucky if we buy a bag of flour every 3 months and maybe a couple boxes of rice every year so I guess this won’t effect us much unless there is a shortage of pasta, veggies and fruit.
Bill, the Depression was 70 years ago. “Almost wiped out” suggests a few were left to breed.
Yes, food shortages will happen in America. And in fact, in every other country. Look forward to wars fought over access to fresh water and farm land, in the 21st Century.
Why isn’t the American government terrified of the American people?
Oh yeah, right, I forgot. America is run by god.
#18 get real. Just because you like seeing babies chopped in pieces doesn’t mean it’s okay. This topic is on the food shortage, don’t use it as a ploy to put insight on how right it is to murder our own nation’s future. America needs to grow up and stop thinking of self. It’s about time something happens to make everyone realize we are not invincible… there are consequences.
#27–brat==food shortages is an equation.
Amount of food/Number of People.
Do the math.
#8, there’s less than 25 cents worth of oats in your kid’s Cheerios. However, the cost of the diesel fuel to transport the oats to the factory and the boxes of Cheerios from the factory to the warehouse and eventually your local supermarket has more than doubled in the last few years.
In 1949, the price of corn per bushel averaged $1.24. Corn futures right now are around $6.13. That’s an increase of 394% in 59 years. In 1949, oil averaged $2.54 per barrel. Last week, it was going for $113.70 per barrel. That’s an increase of 4,376% in the same 59 years.
Does anyone think that perhaps outrageous transportation costs might have a little something to do with the price of food? Or that no one would give a rat’s butt about producing ethanol if the oil companies didn’t have us all by the short and curlies?
#29–husker==I thought this thread was about availability, not cost? If #8 is right about acres of food corn being turned over to ethanol corn ((is that even different?)) or if the corn is the same but put into gas tanks insteal of cereal boxes, then #8 is correct and you are wrong.
Care to modify/explain?