food prices

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Chavez Orders Army to Seize Rice Plants

Struggle over nationalization as plants fear bankruptcy

(Newser) - Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has ordered the army to seize control of the nation's rice processing plants, continuing a trend of industrial nationalization by his government, reports the BBC. Chavez accused the plants of failing to meet government price quotas for grain, intended to ensure cheap food prices. The plants,...

Rural Alaskans Fight to Survive
 Rural Alaskans Fight to Survive 
Feb 9, 2009 12:50 PM CST

Rural Alaskans Fight to Survive

Harsh winter cut off supplies, forcing soaring prices

(Newser) - With some villagers paying $400 for a week's groceries and $1,500 for a month’s heat, rural Alaskans are literally fighting to survive, CNN reports. Milk can cost $10 a gallon and eggs $22 a dozen, and the long trip by snowmobile to the store means running through $50...

Dairy Farmers Going Udders Up
 Dairy Farmers Going Udders Up 
Jan 12, 2009 4:48 PM CST

Dairy Farmers Going Udders Up

Economy slams cow tenders

(Newser) - Dairy farmers are struggling to survive in the face of huge drops in the price they get for milk, the San Francisco Chronicle reports. Though grocery store prices have stayed relatively constant, farmers are now getting just $10 for each hundred pounds of milk they sell, down from $20 in...

UN Report Finds Nearly 1B Are Hungry
UN Report
Finds Nearly
1B Are Hungry
Dec 10, 2008 12:54 PM CST

UN Report Finds Nearly 1B Are Hungry

Cost of basics is down, but still 28% higher than just 2 years ago

(Newser) - Rising food prices have pushed the number of people going hungry to 963 million, or 14% of the world's population, says a UN report published yesterday. Though costs have dropped from historic peaks, basics still cost 28% more than in 2006. That's left 40 million more people undernourished this year,...

At Deep-Sixed Prices, Consider the Lobster

Cost of crustaceans hits 25-year low

(Newser) - Prices are dropping on all sorts of luxury goods—and lobster, now less than $10 a pound, is no exception. It’s the lowest price in 25 years, and might not last as fishermen give up on the trade. Spending $30 for the star of a weeknight dinner at home...

In Tough Times, Aldi Promises Cheap Thrills

Shoppers turn to Aldi for cheaper groceries as recession looms

(Newser) - It may not stock Coke or tempt shoppers with fancy end-aisle displays, but bare-bones grocery chain Aldi fits these tough economics, reports Time. With Americans downgrading to cheaper stores, Aldi's generic, spartan approach is attracting customers eager to save a buck, or more, on a gallon of milk. The chain...

Double Cheeseburger Gets Boot for One-Slice McDouble

McDonald's new burger, with less cheese, takes standby's place on dollar menu

(Newser) - Grumbling from franchisees has McDonald’s set to bump the price of its double cheeseburger up to $1.19, the Chicago Tribune reports. That, of course, would knock it off the popular dollar menu, so plans are to replace it there with the new McDouble—virtually the same burger but...

Let's Chow Down on the Food System
Let's Chow Down on the Food System
ANALYSIS
Oct 12, 2008 5:05 PM CDT

Let's Chow Down on the Food System

Open letter to prez candidates calls for overhaul—now

(Newser) - Americans touch it everyday and it’s a matter of national security, but John McCain and Barack Obama haven’t raised the issue while campaigning: America’s food system is in dire need of an overhaul, Michael Pollan writes in an open letter to the candidates in the New York ...

Biofuels Not Worth Upward Push on Food Prices: UN

Nations should rethink subsidies: report

(Newser) - While use of biofuels is supposed to combat climate change, the effects of its production on food prices is not worth the emissions they offset, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization said today. The FAO called for countries to review production quotas and subsidies that encourage biofuel use in...

You Can't Binge on This Anymore
You Can't Binge on This Anymore
Sep 14, 2008 8:54 AM CDT

You Can't Binge on This Anymore

Food makers shrink packages instead of hiking prices

(Newser) - The half-gallon of ice cream is going the way of the soda fountain, as many manufacturers shave ounces off the size of prepackaged foods—without reducing prices, reports the New York Times. The practice, a response to the bump in transportation and ingredient costs, isn't novel, but the reaction is,...

Food Prices Boom, But Organic Still Sells

Despite rising consumer prices, revenues should reach $33B in 2008

(Newser) - Sales of pricey organic foods have remained strong despite rising food prices, proving organic naysayers wrong, Meredith Niles blogs in Grist. In fact the organics industry has enjoyed double-digit growth since 2005, and while it may not achieve such impressive numbers this year, the trend suggests that consumers are happy...

Japanese PM Resigns
 Japanese PM Resigns
Sep 1, 2008 11:42 AM CDT

Japanese PM Resigns

Fukuda hopes move will clear parliamentary gridlock

(Newser) - Yasuo Fukuda has resigned as Japan’s prime minister, the AP reports. Fukuda said he was stepping down to ensure that a special session of parliament to address the economy runs smoothly. Fukuda, whose approval rating is at 29% after less than a year in office, has presided over a...

Food Makers Tweak Recipes to Cut Costs

Hershey, others quietly substitute cheaper ingredients, fillers

(Newser) - Food manufacturers are adjusting their recipes to cut costs as ingredient prices climb, the Wall Street Journal reports. Hershey is replacing some of its cocoa butter with vegetable oil, while General Mills is dumping pecans for walnuts in one cookie. McCormick, McDonald's, and other companies are making similar moves. But...

Record Food Price Hikes Loom
 Record Food Price Hikes Loom
Aug 21, 2008 7:59 AM CDT

Record Food Price Hikes Loom

Biggest increases for 20 years forecast

(Newser) - Americans should get ready for pain at the supermarket checkout, reports Reuters—and squash any hopes of food prices getting better next year. A revised USDA forecast predicts a 5% to 6% leap in food prices this year—the biggest increase in 20 years—and USDA officials fear 2009 could...

Plains States See Boom, But Await Bust

Strong farming economy highlights nationwide differences

(Newser) - Driven by rising food prices and farmers’ access to loans, the Plains states are a bright economic spot amid the nationwide slump, the Washington Post reports. Farm country was able to avoid the housing bust because it also avoided the boom. And retail space is filling up as consumer spending...

As Food Prices Rise, Lobster Treads Water
 As Food Prices Rise,
 Lobster Treads Water
ANALYSIS
Aug 20, 2008 12:43 PM CDT

As Food Prices Rise, Lobster Treads Water

In Maine at least, local economies dodge the perils of globalization

(Newser) - As global demand drives food prices to new highs, there’s one high-end food item whose price is in decline, Daniel Gross points out in Slate: lobster. In Portland, Maine, a pound of lobster costs slightly more than a gallon of gasoline, a ratio that historically was more like 4-to-1....

Indian State Recommends Eating Rats

Adding rodents to menu pushed as solution to food crisis

(Newser) - Faced with high food prices and ebbing grain reserves, officials in the Indian state of Bihar have endorsed the consumption of rats, Reuters reports. The state government sees the strategy as a way to reduce the pest population as well as curb the demand for grain, and has even proposed...

Hershey Boosts Prices by 10% as Costs Rise

(Newser) - Chocolate maker Hershey said today it is raising prices by about 10% to offset the new costs of ingredients, Reuters reports. Commodities like cocoa and peanuts are up between 20% and 45%, it said, yet one analyst called the price hike a "real surprise." The candy giant also...

Bank of England Pressed to Rein in Inflation

Food, energy prices soar, push inflation to highest rate in 16 years

(Newser) - Great Britain’s inflation rate—driven by energy and food prices rising at the fastest pace in more than 20 years—is on track to hit 5% by autumn, reports the Guardian. The cost of living jumped 0.6% to a 16-year high of 4.4% last month, the largest...

Producers Quick to Pass Price Hikes Down Food Chain

Pricier grain, energy make everything more expensive, from cereal to meat

(Newser) - Soaring grain and energy costs are driving food prices skyward, and big producers are moving to pass price hikes down the food chain to consumers on everything from cereal to meat, the Wall Street Journal reports. And costs won’t likely decrease, with biofuel demand eating up more corn than...

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