Food Rationing in America?

[lynie]

You know, I think that if you can buy in bulk it is wise economically to do so.
But I can also tell you that Survivalists are usually the 1st ones to proclaim the end of the earth or life as we know it.

They are so tired of looking like kooks most of the time that they would love to be able to say, told ya so!

I was raised in an area where Survivalism was pretty popular at times
and can they ever be scary....

Lynie

 

[Filly]

You know, I think that if you can buy in bulk it is wise economically to do so.
But I can also tell you that Survivalists are usually the 1st ones to proclaim the end of the earth or life as we know it.

They are so tired of looking like kooks most of the time that they would love to be able to say, told ya so!

I was raised in an area where Survivalism was pretty popular at times
and can they ever be scary....

Lynie

"I told ya so". You know they'd be ready to jump on that, Lynie. They'll also tell us we better have a firearm. If there's this ration and another WS member was on the ball and stocked up that don't mean a thing if I have the firearm and go and stick them up for all their flour, and cooking oil and maybe I'll leave them 12oz's of rice. Speaking as a survivalist now. I'd be more apt to share if I stocked up and saved. They do have a point though.

 

[Buzz Mills]

Food prices are soaring; buy in bulk to save money

 

[Amraann]

What is a good way to store rice and flour??? How long can you store it? I am wondering as I don't have a lot of freezer space and was wondering if there is a better way?

In sealed tupperware or for space saving reasons in Freezer bags (because they tend to be heavier) on a shelf.

 

[Jeana (DP)]

The curbs and shortages are being tracked with concern by survivalists who view the phenomenon as a harbinger of more serious trouble to come.
“It’s sporadic. It’s not every store, but it’s becoming more commonplace,” the editor of SurvivalBlog.com, James Rawles, said. “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.”

http://nysun.com/news/food-rationing-confronts-breadbasket-world

Scary, much?

i'll have to examine what's going on in Germany. i would say prices have gone up of late. i'll return and report.

OMG!!! We're all gonna die of starvation.

 

[LovingTheChaos]

OMG!!! We're all gonna die of starvation.

While I don't think we are there, yet - I can tell you that I have been watching the price of staple foods climb over the past year. I have a family of 5, 3 kids in day care, & a new house. I watch every dollar that goes out of my bank account.

I am noticing fewer & fewere 'great deals', even at the cost cutter stores that usually advertise BOGO, etc.

The cost of Flour, Oil, Milk, Eggs, Meat have all crept up in the past 12 months. anywhere from 4 - 12%. While that may seem small, when you are living with a tight budget it can hit hard. We are well off, & we can feel it, so I am not sure how someone who is earning an average salary is coping with this. And I don't know about you - but my salary has not gone up 4 - 12 % in the last 12 months.

What has me concerned, beside the price of food & fuel is the ramifications it will have on the economy as a whole. I am concerned because when I have to spend $X on food, & $X on fuel each month, & it's $Y more than I spent last month, that is less money I am likely to spend on things like - going for pizza, flowers for my yard, a new swing set for my kids. I hope things level out, but I haven't seen anything like this before.

 

[txsvicki]

An article in Wall Street Journal is advising people to stock up because food is expected to keep rising and is costing more money that people are getting in returns for keeping the money in savings.

 

[LovingTheChaos]

Glenn Beck was on last night, talking about the same thing I posted above. I am not going to run out & buy all the flour off the shelves, but I will stock up more than usual.
I have been thinking about buying some chickens. Maybe this will be my motivation. You can buy a laying hen for $5 on Craigs list, 3 - 5 hens will lay enough eggs for a family of 5. Now I need to get dh motivated to build a coup.
Once thats done, I want to clear some more property & maybe purchase a cow or two... Maybe some goats.
I am also starting the potty talk with my 18 month old - I'd love to get him out of diapers sooner than I did the girls. The price of diapers has gone up $2 in the past 3 months.

 

[Paladin]

I think people eating a little less is a good thing actually.

 

[LovingTheChaos]

I think people eating a little less is a good thing actually.

Yes, Paladin we could all eat a little less. However, what is going to be more likely is that people will opt for cheaper, less healthy foods. Part of the reason many poor Americans are overweight is becuase it is cheaper to eat bad food. If you are concerned for your health, you tend to pay more to eat. Higher food prices are not going to be good for the over all health of the country.

 

[kayceebee]

http://www.knbc.com/money/15967881/detail.html?dl=mainclick

Calif. Store Asks Customers To Limit Rice Purchases

SAN FRANCISCO -- The price of a food staple -- rice -- has increased dramatically in recent weeks due to crop failure overseas and resulting hoarding, NBC reported, and in the Bay area, one Costco store is asking customers to limit their rice purchases.

Images: Skyrocketing Prices

The price increases are just one among many, despite the U.S. Department of Agriculture's forecast that food prices would rise 3.5 to 4.5 percent in 2008. Most of the price spikes can be traced to rising energy costs and the falling purchasing power of the U.S. dollar.

Rice, however, is a special case. The rice price increase is a result of a domino effect. Drought in Australia led to a severe decline in rice production, that in turn led the world's largest rice exporters to restrict exports. That spurred higher rice prices and hoarding in Asian countries.

Now, in the United States, rice prices have skyrocketed.

At least one California store is asking customers to hold back on their rice purchases. A Costco in the Bay Area has posted signs asking customers to follow their regular rice-buying habits.

Son Tran, who owns Le Cheval Vietnamese Restaurant in Oakland, said he has seen the price of rice go from $20 to $40 in a matter of weeks. And, he said, his restaurant's stockpiles are dwindling. Add to that the fact the price of some vegetables has gone up 50 percent and also that some of Tran's regular customers aren't so regular anymore. The empty tables are a new and troubling trend.

Rice isn't the only food in short supply. The unleavened bread snack matzo, popular with Jewish families during Passover, is also hard to find.

 

[Paladin]

Yes, Paladin we could all eat a little less. However, what is going to be more likely is that people will opt for cheaper, less healthy foods. Part of the reason many poor Americans are overweight is becuase it is cheaper to eat bad food. If you are concerned for your health, you tend to pay more to eat. Higher food prices are not going to be good for the over all health of the country.

Yeah, that's a good point and something I dislike about things in this country. I wish the government could find a reasonable way to give tax-breaks or other incentives to companies to lower the prices on healthier foods.

Like cigarettes, junk foods should be taxed or priced at a higher rate than healthier options.

 

[Floh]

About Britain:

Era of cheap food ends as prices surge

Families have been warned that the prices of basic foods will rise steeply again because of acute shortages in commodity markets.
Experts told The Times yesterday that prices of rice, wheat and vegetable oil would rise further. They also forecast that high prices and shortages — which have caused riots in developing countries such as Bangladesh and Haiti — were here to stay, and that the days of cheap produce would not return. Food-price inflation has already pushed up a typical family’s weekly shopping bill by 15 per cent in a year.

Much more to digest: http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/consumer_goods/article3799327.ece

 

[txsvicki]

There's lots of foods that are made with wheat based products as ingredients. People who don't have a lot of money may be eating much less of these type foods due to price. I know I'm hardly buying any box mixes or anything that isn't made from scratch anymore.

 

[LovingTheChaos]

Yep - even making things from scratch is getting more expensive as the staples rise.
I called my propane supplier today - I live in the North East, so this is a major expense. Last year, I paid 1.99 per gallon for propane. I use about 1000 gallons a year to heat my home (I have a high efficiency furnace). Right now, propane is going at 2.79. That is nothing, fuel oil is going for $4.10 per gallon. For an average home in the northeast, 1000 gallons for the year is $4100 per year. That is almost double what it cost last year.