Food prices are increasing. Too fast and too much!
 

It is so alarming to see the cost of groceries getting higher and higher. Cut deli meat was over $10 a pound yesterday. I did get a pound as I am serivng lunch today to some friends but I doubt I buy more. Then I got this in an mail

Top Grocer Kroger Warning About Rising Inflation, Prices. Inflationary pressure on prices is going to continue, an executive from a major U.S. supermarket chain warned this week.

Yup, Labor crisis, supply chain issues, the pandemic, etc. , buckle up for a long ride it’s not gonna be pretty!

On the good news side of thing, my husband's industry is packaging and they are still going strong. Boxes may sound boring but they are one of those "indicator index" sort of thing. We knew about/were affected by the GFC (global financial crisis of 2007ish) about 6 months to a year before the rest of the country/world because suddenly there was not only no overtime but reduced hours. When companies aren't expecting to sell things, they don't order boxes for things they aren't selling... Throughout the last two years, his company has been pretty much business as usual except for covid safety concerns.

So yes, more shortages and more inflation brought on by a number of variables. As I say, "may you live in interesting times" is a curse and not a blessing, but here we are!

Shipping boxes are important. Million more the home deliveries now then before plus shipping, and packing depend on boxes. Pretty good business to be in!

don't forget the effect of the massive forest fires this year and the drought, and the flooding. All of those are effecting our crops too. Farmers where I am could not feed their cattle, so they sold them off....which in the short term should provide extra supply and cost should go down, then up....but...I think they just went up. What??? Oh, I suppose they had to reinvest their profits from selling off the cattle which probably was lower as there was more supply but still had to buy feed for the remaining cattle, which is high because of the drought around here.

These are difficult times for every industry. Food is one of the first things to be effected by inflation always. I am not sure just how we will all get through it. I live on a fixed income and there is nothing that will change that. We have gotten through times of inflation before and will have to do it again. I am just grateful I don't have a house payment any longer. It makes things go a bit smoother.

I also noticed prices in my midwest stores rising too. I try to buy meats when on sale. Last week we have chicken hind quarters on sale for 10# at $4.99 so I bought a bag though I knew I had some in the freezer already. When they put their ground beef and pork on sale at 10# tubes, I buy them and split them in useable sizes for my recipes. Luckily I have 3 freezers at my disposal and my garden has been plentiful this year. I've also been sharing in my neighborhood as we have elderly couples on a very fixed income so this helps them somewhat.

good for you for sharing with your neighbors who are on limited incomes. I don't have a freezer and can not do much gardening anymore. But I did plant some cherry tomatoes in pots and have a lot of them so when I pick, I bundle up some and share them. I have been debating getting a small freezer but will probably need to more into assisted living in a year or so so haven't wanted to do that. Plus it would need to be in the basement and food I store down there tends to be forgotten by me. I need to go down and check the dates on some canned goods. I actually have been trying to use up the little "store" of goods I put down there at the beginning of the pandemic. I do try and use meat sparely and when I cook up a batch of stuff, I do freeze it in single servings. Sometimes I think I spend more on my 20# dog than I do I myself. I give always some kibble of a good brand but also mix in a bit of meat and vegetables. Good thing I have him to cook for otherwise I would be eating a lot of peanut butter toast, cereal, and canned soups.

Gas has shot up so it affects absolutely everything.
I rarely drink alcohol but my neighbor just told me he & his wife had 9 beers at a new Bar on Friday night. (and yes, he drove home) He didn’t complain about the tab ….. but yet he complains about grocery prices. Go figure.

Farmer's can grow it here, it's just the price of getting it to market. There's rising gas prices, driver shortages, increasing wages, to say nothing of the inflation that no one in govt seems to be trying to do anything about. It's the perfect storm for a wild ride. Hang on everyone.

ummm....getting the pandemic under control would be huge to get the prices down and the economy going......plenty of folks in government trying to do that....problem is there are so many people out there who don't listen so well. I will not go into a store to shop at this point. So I am not helping the economy and I will not go into a restaurant either at this point. sorry restaurant owners. I think I am part of the silent folks who just stay home because folks insist on gong out and about without taking this pandemic seriously. I don't like it....but at least I have my stitching to keep me busy and my stash has turned into gold at this point. If a store does not offer mail order or curbside pickup, I don't use them. Doing almost all of my own cooking instead of getting ready made has helped me save my budget though. I don't buy many prepared foods at this point.

We went grocery shopping this morning........$300.00 for groceries, $100.00 for dog food and $75.00 for a half a tank of gas (we already had a half tank). That is almost 1/2 of my paycheck, just for one trip into town.

Farmers here have had good crops. It is the distribution that is the problem not the climate. Local news interviewed some of the biggest farmers in the area, said they had a bumper crop but trying to get it from farm to table is the problem.

My DH has heard me complaining about the rise in food prices for several years now, but this last year...oh boy...the prices have shot up! I've been budgeting and trimming down every way that I can. The new app for our local, big, grocery store, Safeway, has really helped me to plan ahead, take advantage of the deals and trim down the list before I go to the store. I use it religiously now and take advantage of their "drive-up & go," program. That way, I don't have to be subjected to seeing those impulse buys in the store. (Not to mention the increased exposure to covid.) It's been working well for me. I've been able to keep my food budget on par, even a little lower than last year.

Iceblossom...that is really interesting about the boxes. I never would have thought about that.

I haven't seen the statistics on the crops for the Californian farmers this year, but I can tell you that my own, vegetable gardens and orchards are not producing much this year. In fact, it's been pretty dismal. The heat and smoke from the fires have an a profound effect, so I assume that the same holds true for the commercial farmers. It would be interesting to see how that plays out.

We need some good recipes for budget meals posted here. :)

That's exactly what I'm hearing here. We have some small stores that sell local produce which is a boon right now. The farmers deliver themselves and so are still able to do so. Things are still more expensive because of the gas costs but at least it's available.

Hubby was upset at a man a few weeks ago for putting some of his groceries back and holding up the line. When it was his turn he found out why. Yikes! It was so much more he was astounded.

Some parts of the country and some crops have done great. Others, not so much. We had a couple of bad storms this summer that were literally gully washers. Wheat was knocked down, making it harder to combine and more likely to sprout. Soybeans were under water in the fields.

I can't think of a single thing in the grocery that hasn't gone up - some pretty dramatically. We're okay, we don't really spend extravagantly, keep cars until well over 100,000 miles, don't go out a lot. A simple life, I guess, is our norm, so easy enough to live within our means. It's not us I worry about, it's our (adult) children and grandchildren. :(

Not only are prices going up, but supply is going down. There was no canned cat food at the store today. Luckily, I have a little and my cats will eat dry. I have been cooking for the animals at times in order to clean up the freezer and save money.

The tri tip roast I cooked for a friend last week was $10 a pound before it was on sale. Yikes! I see steaks at $20 a pound, but haven't purchased any.

I am cooking for a family from the women's shelter a mother with five little ones. I try not to think what that runs every week. Just once a week, but I try to make a nice meal. The shelter is totally full and this young mother has been placed in another location. If I can do anything to make her life easier, I will.

I am kicking myself for selling my mom's old cookbook that was put out by the government during the depression on how to make healthy meals on a budget. I know I use eggs a lot...can make "fried vegetables" by sautéing any veggies you have then adding a couple of eggs to the pan...quick and easy...could also add some canned pinto, navy, chickpeas, or whatever to further boast the protein. Mom used to make a ton of hot dishes where rice, noodles, potatoes took a leading role....not good for Keto...but helped keep the cost downs. I have been trying to add things like nuts, seeds, yogurt to keep the meat down....not that those things are cheap either. I have been thinking that every time I cook a squash, that I really aught to scoop out the seeds and roast them to much on...more protein. oh...I have also been buying a lot of frozen veggies....I think they may be less expensive then fresh and actually more economical in that there isn't much waste at all with them.

The other day the lady in front of me had two small girls with her. Once given the total, she reluctantly started to have the clerk start to take things off the bill. She started with ice cream, and some little kid treats. The kids were upset, and mom tried to explain how sorry she was. She was counting her money, and I bent over, and pretended to pick up some "dropped" money. Her eyes filled with tears, and she had two very happy little girls. I know what a struggle it can be, having had some lean years when my kids were small. I try to do what I can to help others out.

Awww, that was so sweet. And so tactful!

I’m for that idea. If you start a new post for this, I can bet more will add to it. It’s a great plan !

I saw a cool cookbook like this in an antique store. I didn’t buy it but I did spend some time looking at it.

I learned to stretch the food dollar & I had the world’s best teachers. My Mother & her friends were farm wives who put 3 meals on the table every day also lunches mid morning & mid afternoon. (today called a “snack”). They made food that didn’t require a lot of ingredients and I try to remember that in meal planning.

I have several depression era cookbooks. It's all basic cooking. It's surprising how many families do not buy basic foods anymore. I overheard two younger ladies talking in the grocery store by the dry beans. One said dry beans were pretty to look at and the other said she had no idea why dry beans were even sold anymore because no one she knows ever buys them, her mother never did.

Climate change is not the problem. As far as gas prices, last year the US was energy independent, this year, and the next three, we are not.

Don't want to get too far off topic. "Energy Independence" tends to be a buzz word used politically by some and isn't really what it seems. You want to be patriotic? Ride a bike and harness the wind.

https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/ar...dle-east-peace

No one can go back and live like they did 100 years ago. Some do go off grid but I think it's more to escape. And most use solar to power the modern items they have to have so not much different then living mainstream other then being isolated.

I know what you mean. It's a processed food world now. I always buy dry beans and soak them overnight or cook them on the stove top until tender. It's really not that hard.

But then a year or so ago, there was a young woman posting on the nextdoor forum for my neighborhood who was in panic because she was running out of baby wipes and didn't know how she was going to keep her baby clean. Someone said "Do you have soap and water and a washcloth?" People think that they have to have a lot of expensive processed foods and premade items. I was raised by a depression era mom and we never bought stuff like that. That was a luxury. We bought whole food and made our own meals and washed with plain soap and water. We were healthy AND clean for minimum money. Its kind of sad that a lot of people don't realize that you can do that and it really doesn't take that much effort.

I grew up on a farm on the prairies of Canada. In 1959 a massive hail storm hit. There were still piles of hail in corners of buildings hours later. My sisters held pillows against the big windows in our living room to keep them from breaking. We were days away from swathing the fields. We were hailed out 100%. That spring there was money for either hail insurance or seed grain--our Dad chose the grain and prayed, I'm sure.

It was a terribly tough winter. We survived on what our Mom had put up from the garden, our own butchered beef and pork--and the bi-weekly cream check. I learned to make do and make from scratch as a child. It stuck.

That was so nice of you. My family was poor when I was little. My parents divorced when I was very young and my mom was left with a huge mountain of bills that my dad had run up. Those days, the divorce laws were not in a woman's favor. She worked two jobs just to make ends meet. I would greet my mom at the grocery store on pay day, which was once, every two weeks. I'd help her shop, so she could get home and start on her second job, but also because I wanted some "goodies." I could pick out a package of cookies, but only if there was enough to buy the basics first. My sister used to joke that Mom was the only person she knew that could make Tuna Noodle Casserole without the tuna. I learned a lot about money from my mom and I'm grateful for it today.

OK...I'll start a thread. :)

A few months ago my oldest son shared something with me. He said he was so grateful we taught our kids how to cook real food while they were growing up. Btw- they are all good cooks. He said when Covid hit he had no trouble finding quality ingredients in the stores but all the junk/processed/packaged food shelves were empty! He also said he knows very few people his age who know what real food is, much less how to cook. When he has friends over they can't believe what he puts together (and we aren't talking exotic, just homemade).

As I've said before my husband is the cook of the house but I cooked all the time the kids were young. I grew up with a Mom who was a wonderful cook and thrifty as well. I still have some of her Depression Era ways and am glad I do.

Patrice- the comment about the baby wipes cracked me up!!! My kids bottoms never saw those cold things lol :)

I so agree, Susie. Those wipes are icky. Whatever is in them, stays on the baby. I have trouble believing that would be good.

For years, I didn't cook that much but I had learned how from my also thrifty, Depression era mom. So when I needed to cook a lot, I could move right back into that. I had no problem at all finding healthy whole food during the lockdown, but there wasn't a lot of processed food available which was no problem for me.

I knew a lot of younger women thru a dachshund forum I was on. When people were starting to feed raw food to their dogs one of them freaked out and said "Have you ever touched raw chicken??? It's gross". I was like "Yes, I've been touching raw chicken most of my life" lol. I couldn't believe she had never cooked chicken! It's amazing to me.

And I just cooked a pot of black beans last night. It took me about 10 minutes to get it ready and then it cooked on the stovetop for a couple hours. But during that couple hours, I didn't have to do anything except stir it once in a while. Easy peasey

I too grew up in a poor family. There were 9 kids, and as was common in those days, one income. We lived down the alley from a local grocery store, that generously allowed us to purchase on credit. Every payday, dad's first payment was to the grocer. I remember some lean times, and hard lessons about wants vs needs. We went to Catholic School, with our tuition paid by dad doing work for the church/school. (In addition to his full time job.) He did printing, janitorial duties, painting, what ever needed to be done. Mom was very thrifty with her purchases, and cooking. Often times, my dad would just eat baked potatoes for dinner. I didn't realize until much later, that he did that so there would be more meat or side dishes for the rest of us. He was very thrifty through out his lifetime, always saving for the next rainy day. When he died, we found over $2000 tucked away in the pockets of shirts and pants in his closet.

Food prices are going up
 

Cash’s Mom- I agree with you. There are all kinds of ways to save money. I didn’t grow up in the depression era, but I came from a very very poor family and learned a lot. Has anyone ever watched Depression Era Cooking on YouTube? She is kind of fun to watch and has great ideas.

Cooked dry beans have a lot more flavor than canned ones...a better texture too. I still used cans, because they are convenient, but I try to cook a big pot of dried beans at least once a week during the cooler seasons. (Not in the summer)