What is causing the high food prices? $4 for a gallon of milk. What can be done about this?

Question

High food prices: what is going on? They keep going up weekly. Milk is $4 a gallon! Ridiculous! What can be done? Why are our leaders not addressing this problem? I haven't heard any of the presidential "candidates" discuss this.

Answer 1

Everyone wanted cleaner air. So, part of the solution was to make a blended gasoline called "gasahol". One of the ingredients to make the alcohol to blend with the gasoline is corn. But corn is also the chief source of nutrition in the the feed lots for cattle, including dairy cows. So, the more corn you use to make gasahol, the less is available for use in feed lots and the price goes up because of the law of supply and demand. Since the dairy farmer has to pay more to feed his cows, that expense has to be passed on to the consumer. The guy who drives the milk from the farm to the packaging plant and on to the grocery store has to pay more for his gasoline. So, that expense is passed on to the customer as well.

Sure, some politician could impose price controls. We did that during the Nixon years. When the dust settled we had inflation, unemployment and high interest rates in the Carter administration.

In short, there is no magic wand and the President is not a Federal Wizard King who can wave one.  

Answer 2

prices are going up because of the cost of fuel to transport it to the market.  What can be done?  Vote Democrat!

Answer 3

Food prices are going up because gas prices are going up. The more money it takes to ship something the more it's going to cost you. There's no getting around it. In a way they are discussing it because they're discussing gas prices and alternative energy.

Answer 4

Gas prices. They have to deliver all that food.

Answer 5

Ask Pelosi.