Grow Your Own: Reflections on the Economy vs. Food Prices

...and you know it's never funny
when you're shoes are run through
and there's a rumble in your tummy...
--Neneh Cherry, "Buffalo Stance"

I'd heard about the drastic changes in food prices as a result of the unholy combination of spiked gas prices, severe global weather patterns, and the (still unspoken) recession of the US economy. I had been blissfully ignorant until I went to the store today and got a dose of reality.

My flabber was gasted.
My dumb was founded.
My as(s) was tonished.

A box of Lipton Black Pearl tea: $3.79. A 5-lb. bag of granulated (white) sugar: $3.19. Bananas: 69 cents per pound. A head of iceberg lettuce: $1.99 (we won't even discuss romaine lettuce). A 5-lb bag of potatoes: $3.99. An 8-oz. jar of store-brand mayonnaise: $2.88. A 24-oz. loaf of store-brand wheat bread: $2.79.

Jesus, keep me near the cross.

I had a Lil John moment, and started screaming "WHAT?!" each time I examined the shelf tag of a particular item. I think I scared the stocker who was nearby.

I quickly revised my shopping list and got the bare basics, paying close attention to the clearance and sale items. I bought 5 items, and my bill came to $8.55. And that was with the use of the store savings club card.

Jesus wept.

Even with the frequent use of various savings club cards, folks are going to come out of pocket mightily. Word on the curb is that food banks are actually being depleted to record levels; people can't afford to eat and charitable organizations can't afford to feed people; a lot of these places count on food donations but nowadays, people need that food for themselves (especially staples such as rice).

There has also been a serious increase in the number of people applying for public assistance (also known as welfare), in order to get food stamps. And here's a news flash for you: all of these folks are not black or Hispanic/Latino, and quite a few of them have full-time jobs.

I had a discussion with the supervisor of the store deli and she talked about driving ten miles from her home in a rural part of the city, in order to take advantage of deeply discounted produce. She is willing to burn up gas in order to get those better prices so her family could be fed longer.

I understand that areas of the world upon which the US imports produce, rice, etc. has been hit with some horrific weather that has affected the crops; even Iowa, a mass producer of corn and soybeans, is under water due to broken levees (hmm...they sure are getting a lot of timely press...more than the Katrina victims did. Skin privilege strikes again! And I wonder who built their levees? Was it the same military people who made the New Orleans levees?). But there has to be some sort of surplus, somewhere, to help people out...just like all of that oil that has been sitting off the coast of Alaska for the past 27 years, and has been protected by a no-drill treaty.

Mmph.

Before I checked out, I just wandered around the store in a kind of culture shock. I just couldn't believe the prices. I need to find a nice patch of grass and grow my own produce (and maybe some herbs to numb the pain of the recession). In the meantime, I may have to take it back to my college days and stock up on ramen noodles and the macaroni in a box, with the powdered cheese sauce. Sure, my blood pressure will be sky high due to all the sodium in those items, and my tongue may end up a permanent shade of Day-Glo orange (from the powdered cheese sauce), but at least I could afford to eat.

Thanks for stopping by.

T.