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
America can grow food like no other country. I think we should start playing hardball with the oil mullahs and petro thugs. Melonhead Chavez and the evil racist Iranian dwarf can’t eat oil no matter how hard they try.
#31–Lou==I agree totally. Oil is very cheap to produce and the price is set by availability/demand.
Same thing should apply for food.
We need to find the price level that people will pay just short of invasion.
Then as food corporations report the largest profit levels ever, we could even look at removing their subsidies?==Naw, that’s not how corporate welfare works in USA.
Hey Bobbo,
Sure it could be an equation, but also the more people the more ability we would have as a nation in pulling together and getting on the right track.
If your that dedicated to the notion of less people = more food supply. Why not think of others instead of clinging to self preservation? Hell, take yourself out. That way there would be one less pompous ***hole to deal with. Believe me, in the end, people like you will be the first to break.
#33–Hey Brat. Good ones!!
I’m not dedicated to anything except common sense, facts, the dictionary, and the best interests of my fellow man as a group. As individuals, as the two of us demonstrate, we can be turds in a punch bowl.
Math is interesting. Rather than admit the truth of the equation, you would rather attack me? Why is that?
Like most right to lifers, you “sound like” all for having the government enforce your private (but usually hypocritical) religious beliefs on women who want to make other choices, all while not wanting your tax dollars to support the direct result of your policies? Please tell us that’s not true?
Now, thinking of others is exactly what I’m doing. Why not let others choose for themselves about whether or not to overpopulate the earth rather than force them to be baby factories?? That’s me saying let freedom ring.
Break what?
Okay Bobbos
If you even understood the term common sense, I believe you would not use it in your debate with me. Your common sense in not our natural understanding but an opinion, therefore knowledge (learned) obtained through series of experiences, not naturally known. Your facts are not based on truth or concrete evidence, but once again opinion, therefore you’ve misunderstood the meaning of the word completely.
Maybe you should read your dictionary?
Yes mathematics is very interesting! Although your use of it is quite hilarious. Anyone can use mathematics to come up with their own equations on life, love, and liberty. Mathematics is our universal language, so
your opinionated equation has no bearing.
You sound like you “hate” those that love life? Tell me, what have you done in your life that has made such a difference to have that “holier than thou” speech? Are you really better than anyone else? I’ll be the first to admit that I’m not! I know for a “FACT” that I speak for all of my fellow people that I believe we all have a right to live life to the fullest potential, not discriminating against the most helpless…. Our nation’s future. I guess you enjoy seeing your fellow people torn apart and thrown in trash bags? As for me, I say let freedom ring, even for the smallest of us!
You stated, “Now, thinking of others is exactly what I’m doing. Why not let others choose for themselves about whether or not to overpopulate the earth rather than force them to be baby factories?? That’s me saying let freedom ring.”
Who told you we were overpopulated? The government that you oppose so strongly?
I guess we’ll just have to agree to disagree.
i thought if any so called food shortages started it was because of access, not actual “food”
-also, i know in recent years the rumors mills say that many countries refuse to buy the bulk of our corn, mainly because something like 70-80% grown in the US now is GMO corn…genetically modified organism?… -which comes with strings attached. (aside from the fact most of europe has banned the use of genetically modified crops for human consumption.) i think a company called Monsanto is trying to strongarm everyone into buying there GMO seed….??
anyone have clues on this? canada had issues with monsanto me thinks too….
i forget, was a while back when i caught this info..
otherthat than that.. me thinks the food shortage story is just BS to get people into a submissive panic…
–
waay too much BS is spoon-fed to us americans these days…only way to get “real” world news here is to go outside the US for it…
*shrug*
-soundwash
#35–Brat.
Yes, common sense, or: That sense we have in common.
Math, quite different. An externality. A discipline like logic.
Logic–arguing against a proposition does not imply an approval of its opposite.
We do disagree.
#29..
NOW, do a % of PROFIT, for both eras..
“Lucky me I have at least 3+ months of groceries stored as fat. All I need to live is vitamins and coffee.”
As do most Americans.
Looks like Malthus was right….
Maybe if we hadn’t given up so much farmland to suburban sprawl and McMansions, we could grow some food!
I have NEVER seen any of these shortages. I know Flour is at a premium, but I can manage.
READING IS FUNDAMENTAL?
Your source is some politician at the the UN,the people who brought us food for oil scandal,the people who quashed the study showing 2nd hand smoke didn’t cause more cancer because it didn’t have the results they wanted, the people who now call any one who disagrees with global warming criminal deniers. The largest bureaucracy in the world who wants more control and more laws in everything and everyones lives might just might like to scare people into thinking about food shortages just like so called global warming needs the bureaucracy to step in and control/handle the food supply
Mr editor you need to read not me, and might I suggest our own govt reports showing increase in crop production every year in the past 10
Bobbo, you are correct about the article being primarily about food shortages. There was a bit at the end about people rioting in Haiti because of the high food prices. There has been a shortage of rice coming for quite some time, but I really don’t forsee shortages of other foods in the US anytime soon. Just really high prices.
I volunteer at the local food bank and we have more applications for aid than ever. Unemployment is very low in our area, but most paychecks hover slightly above poverty level. When I ask new clients who have never applied before why they need assistance now, they inevitably say they are putting so much more of their paychecks in their gas tanks and now food prices have risen. Ten dollars barely buys a gallon of milk, loaf of bread and dozen eggs. Last year,the cost of those items was around $5-6.
We heard about hog farmers in Canada giving away baby pigs because they couldn’t afford to feed them. This seemed like a great opportunity for the food bank to obtain meat for clients. We had 4-H kids volunteering to raise them and a butcher with temporary freezer space. It would cost about $100 worth of grain to raise each one at today’s prices. Churches were willing to sponsor the feed. Then we discovered it would cost $2000 to get them here. Crap. We might as well buy the meat in the grocery store. The meat would have cost less than 50 cents/pound before transportation.
As far as acres for other crops growing corn, it is true. Producers will always try for a more profitable product. I live in corn country and last year when wheat prices were high I saw more wheat around here than ever in my life. I do know that locally, many corn/soybean farmers who didn’t lock in their fuel and fertilizer costs last fall are raising soybeans due to the high input costs of corn. As far as vegetable acres in California and Arizona, I know that those producers usually have corn or wheat in one of their crop rotations, so we won’t be any shorter on domestic veggies. Wheat prices are still high and Kansas and Oklahoma acres that are normally wheat are not ideal for growing corn, so I wouldn’t imagine those producers changing crops.
This is just my experience with food prices/shortages. If we actually have a shortage, I’m going to my mother-in-law’s house. She’s still got her Y2K stuff.
>>the people who quashed the study showing
>>2nd hand smoke didn’t cause more cancer
>>because it didn’t have the results they wanted
Pmitchell, wtf are you talking about? The UN study definitively showed that 2nd hand smoke DOES cause more cancer.
http://tinyurl.com/69kr8q
#43. I agree with your tirade against the UN, just not the message. If you don’t like that as a source, then Google the issue, there are many other sources including the update I posted at the bottom of the article. But you can choose to ignore it all, because you don’t like any of the sources, and THATS tin foil idiocy.
people this “the sky is falling ” routine is just foolish do any of you know just how much farm land sits fallow in the U.S. because the govt pays farmers not to grow we are not headed into food crisis or shortage short term or long term thisis just the next 15 min of scare the shit out of you the press has come up with
in my short life Ive seen the press run with
no oil,global nuclear destruction, nuclear winter, ozone hole gonna fry us all , global warming ,now were all gonna be fighting for ding dongs at the circle k
people when are you going to catch on that the press is mostly full of shit and only wants to sell papers or just be read whether its true or not. dont read an article by some guy in New York City that has only seen a farm in a picture and has a bet with his friend in the next cubicle that the one who gets his article picked up by more sites has to buy drinks fri .
I kid you not I head this from the source on pacifica radio the man was a writer for the Washington post and told his funny but sad story about manipulating the public in just such ways
#47–Pmitchell==walk into your local grocery store and open your eyes. Or read the excellent post at #44.
Prices going up faster than pay checks.
A metaphore==that means the sky is falling.
A simile==its as if the sky was falling.
Is the sky really falling?–No.
Was the subject a falling sky?–No.
So yea. Everything is just fine. Just keep consuming and not criticizing the powers that be.
So much for infrastructure and political positioning. Unless of course this is just a politically driven move in the elections this year to make it even more about the economy et al and less about the war overseas. I think we need a war on our own shores (did I just suggest a revolution?).
BTW: it doesn’t matter what anyone says here – your points of view are all subjective. Regardless of basis in ‘truth’ ‘fact’ or otherwise they come from your interpretations through your own perspectives on them. You are not totally right. You are not totally wrong. You are just whispering to the wind.
IMO: the wisest among us sees the trend, prepares for what’s coming and says nothing but a warning. Yes – by this standard I too am in the wrong/unwise, but sometimes you just have to say something.
Viva la revolucion?
Soon my King…. soon….
Why don’t the Canadians complain to their Head of State? Oops, I forgot; Their Head of State doesn’t even live in Canada…
>>Oops, I forgot; Their Head of State doesn’t
>>even live in Canada…
The Governer General (currently Michaëlle Jean), serves as the head of state except when Queenie is in town.
#49–Relinquish==boy, that crap is worse than what I post. Actually, same crap, just more of it.
Bobbo,
Hence, why most of the time I don’t need to post. Most of your stuff I agree with and don’t need to post. I just wanted to drive the point home on this one. Thanks for making me laugh though.
Hate to bring this up but, if you look around there are countries where the people are paying 60 to 70 percent of their income for food!!
#53–Relinquish==I find spreading my pearls to be a thankless effort, yet, I feel “called” to do so.
Want to split the week up even/odd? Until such compact is ironed out (I’m on vacation next month) we can just post over one another on occasion?
#55 Bobbo –
Not sure on that – we do differ enough that we would likely only agree to disagree. For instance – I am pro-life (that said I am also pro-freedom/choice). When it comes to abortion perhaps the choice should have been made before conception – if one made the choice to have sex now one should deal with the ramifications (be it pregnancy, STD or otherwise). Now before any flames come – I concede on issues of force/rape etc. Yet this is digression within this topic and so I leave it at that and will not comment on it again in this thread.
However in political world view and government deep seeded corruption – we likely agree.
Keep a watch for me – If I start posting more – it means I am getting sick and tired of seeing the same thing over and over but no change in the way it is approached, seen or attempted at correcting/change.
PAX OR POX either way – whatever…..
#56–Relinguish==thats fascinating. Maybe we could start a cage match?
The issue is not the morality of the decision, it is the morality of who gets to decide.
Course, you are also wrong on every other aspect of the question as can only be slowly teased-out.
We could go off topic, wait for the topic==go to a thread on topic, or just remain self contented toads.
#57 Bobbo
LOL – I like you – a civil disputer!
c-r-o-a-k…..
#58==Relinqisher.
Well, no arguing with a resonable person. Mustard has lost some of his spunk after the electro shock therapy finally took hold. He is spurned for his privately rolled religion and I don’t recall if he has pronounced on the abortion issue.
After I posted, I questioned myself if there was any wiggle room on what I believed. The answer was “no.” The possibility of anyone saying anything to question that is so remote as to be a toad with wings.
As stated, I do enjoy having my mind changed.
But lets be realistic??????
HA HA. Bush just on the tube.
He is blaming Congress for the energy crises. They would not ok drilling in Anwar.
Is there a rating below the worst president in History?