Like Things Aren't Expensive Enough: Food Prices Will Go Up Due to Floods

Tweet

I think like a lot of us, we have noticed that food prices keep going, going, going up. I've noticed it myself and my food "budget" money (actually food stamps) just doesn't stretch out for the entire month. And I'm only one person that I need to shop for food...hate to think what large families are going through. Well last night I heard that we can expect food prices to soar even more, beginning with corn related products..but it's like a domino effect that will effect everything down the line. This is due to all the massive flooding that has been going on in the MidWest, especially places like Iowa... one of the leading state to grow produce and especially corn. Besides corn itself, you can expect any food that contain corn, like Corn Flakes to skyrocket...but that's not all. Since livestock is fed corn as well,our meats will go up as well. A lot of corn crops go to making ethanol as well for gasoline Found this article of which I quote a bit here http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/food/2008-06-13-floodcorn_N.htm (Quote) [i]Floods that have inundated the Midwest could reduce world corn supplies and drive food prices higher at a time when Americans are already stretching their grocery budgets and people in poor countries have rioted over rising food costs. The U.S. government will report later this month on how many acres of corn were lost to floodwaters. But farmers and agriculture experts already say the toll appears grim, with thousands of acres probably destroyed in the region that grows most of the world's corn. "It's not a very good picture at all. We're looking at possibly a good reduction in acres if a lot of this crop remains underwater," said Chad Hart, an agriculture economist at Iowa State University. "There's still hope, but it wanes with each rainstorm." Floodwaters also hurt soybean crops, sending prices to near all-time highs. Wheat, oats, rice and other food commodities were damaged, too. And corn prices could jump further if floodwaters don't recede soon, experts say. [/i] Here's another article http://www.voanews.com/english/2008-06-17-voa73.cfm?rss=united%20states How many of you have already been feeling the pinch of higher costs of food in general to begin with? I'm lucky that I can merely walk to my supermarket to shop, but I really feel for people who have to rely on driving to the supermarket to get groceries..so between higher gas costs and now the potential of even higher food bills...like yikes, are we going to have to start taking loans out from banks just to live?