Food Rationing Makes Unwelcome Return

New York Sun:

Many parts of America, long considered the breadbasket of the world, are now confronting a once unthinkable phenomenon: food rationing.

Major retailers in New York, in areas of New England, and on the West Coast are limiting purchases of flour, rice, and cooking oil as demand outstrips supply. There are also anecdotal reports that some consumers are hoarding grain stocks.

At a Costco Warehouse in Mountain View, Calif., yesterday, shoppers grew frustrated and occasionally uttered expletives as they searched in vain for the large sacks of rice they usually buy.

"Where's the rice?" an engineer from Palo Alto, Calif., Yajun Liu, said. "You should be able to buy something like rice. This is ridiculous."

Read the whole story: New York Sun

Comments

[THEDEVILCOMES]

How to destroy America----Raise the price of Oil in a free market economy to over 150.00 a bar.We started this free market economy huh Bill Clinton-George Bush to very rich men not while in office just after they leave. Lady and Gent's ever heard of Brazil and Sugar Cane Q. Our leadership is taking us down the wrong path with Corn. OBAMA 08 FOR CHANGE OR LIKE GET READY TO RUMBLE WAR WORLD 3-GOOD NITE MR AND MRS AMERICA.

[gcallaghan]

Got soup?

[Rule Of Law]

People, just as there is no oil shortage, there is no food shortage either. They've screwed us with sub prime loans, they've screwed us with manipulated oil prices, and now they are screwing us with this bogus shortage bs. So get a clue people. If you couldn't see this coming, you weren't paying attention.

You think that Exxon is the only company in America that wants to control the Universe? Ever hear of Cargill? Probably not, as they are a family owned food processor, but they are the power in Agriculture in the mid-west. They want their piece of the American (taxpayer) pie, just like the Oil Boys do. And if you fall for this manufactured food shortage crap, then once again you get what you deserve.

End the war, impeach Bush, end subsidies for All Corporations, and bailouts for the wealthy while the rest of America pays.

[WIpatriot]

Where's the beef?

[ashabot]

Lab meat, baby. Lab meat.

[Rule Of Law]

Patriot, hoped you'd be here. No drought, pestilence or plague where I live--and we produce 70% of what America eats. And unlike MrC, (I think...?) I don't believe in peak oil either; In fact I think there's way more than they tell us and controlling the production is how to set record profits and keep people on edge. That's how this whole food thing looks to me as well. As if the inflationary push of our devaluing dollar wasn't getting the job done fast enough, now they want to create real panic among us. There's something going on around here, what it is ain't exactly clear...

[nomorestatusquo1]

LOL - not one word in this article about why there is a shortage.

LOL ++++++++++­++++++++++­++++++++

BTW, it will only get worse.

Hint: You can't blame this all on George Bush, only so much as he keeps giving in to liberal bull** histrionics. Another hint: code word "bio-fuel".

[ashabot]

Another hint: code word "Global Warming".

[CaptainHowdy]

Funny, I went to Vons here in Fresno and rice was $9 for a 20 lb. bag.

You don't suppose that this article, sourced by many but originating from this article and this article alone, has anything to do with the gas companies influencing little known papers in order to try and scare people off of biofuels?

NAAAAHHHH.­..

[Rule Of Law]

As it happens, I agree with you, but many here are ready to demonize ethanol as the culprit. Higher energy prices, larger retail markups, political instability, all contribute more to the higher prices for everything we buy today.

From the American Coalition for Ethanol
http://www.ethanol.org/news/?newsid=4

Misunderstanding corn for human consumption
- Many don't realize that corn for ethanol and corn for human consumption are two different types. Field corn, the type used to feed livestock, goes into ethanol production. Sweet corn, a very small portion of the U.S. crop, is the type eaten by humans.
- Critics routinely overstate how much corn is consumed as human food; in reality, less than 10 percent of the U.S. corn crop is annually used for human food in the form of sweeteners, cereals, etc.
- Corn's customers, in order, historically have been: the livestock sector, export markets, processors (including ethanol), and lastly, humans.
- Those spinning the "food vs. fuel" debate suggest that U.S. corn exports go directly to feed the malnourished in developing countries and that ethanol directly removes food from those in need. In reality, the majority of corn exports from the U.S. are used to feed livestock in developed countries.
- There is more food per capita today on a global scale than ever before, according to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization. Lack of infrastructure, access to capital, political instability, and other issues are the more likely causes of hunger than scarcity of food.

[Rule Of Law]

No word about why, because, in short, there is no shortage. As for bio fuel, the corn ( one of the worst plants for ethanol, btw) used is not meant for human consumption and does not impact the availability of corn for other uses. Do some research.

[BeccaS]

It impacts the availability of corn for food in that the acres that would normally be planted for food consumption are being used to produce corn for biofuel. To say that food is not being lost to biofuel is rather like splitting hairs.

If you do not believe there is a shortage, you haven't been paying attention to world news in the last several months. We aren't feeling the pinch in the U.S. to the same degree as other countries, but there is a worldwide shortage. The fact that a country is wealthy does not make it immune to the troubles of the world. Just look at Japan. Food shortages there threaten to set them back to post WWII conditions. The warnings about food insecurity in Japan first came out in 2006. Today, those warnings are bearing fruit. Too bad it is bitter fruit, otherwise they would have plenty to eat.

[PierreLeClerke]

And We the People are doleing out BILLIONS to big corp farms to not grow one viable fields.
This is a criminal act that will result in the desired higher prices for the crops into the pockets of the land Barons and starvation for thousands around the globe. Its called "compassionate conservatism".
It means manipulate and rape any market you can for as great a gain as you can realize. "Mission Accomplished".

[Podewumun]

I blame the Mormons.

Have you ever seen one of their pantrys? They're the size of a two-car garage!

[BeccaS]

It has nothing to do with the Mormons. They keep large quantities of food all the time. They didn't rush out one day and buy all those goods. They just replace what they use, which is no more a drain on stocks than going to the grocery once a week.

[ThePhilosopher]

Dear. the comment to which you are replying was a joke.

[Rule Of Law]

LOL!

[OneVoiceInACrowd]

Let's see, since there is not enough corn to go around people have switched to rice and now there is a rice shortage. The progressive liberals must be behind this because they want us all to drive hybrid cars.

[Olerist]

welcome to George Bush's America

It's like Katrina only on a larger scale (and the rich dont suffer)

[ashabot]

Welcome to Republican controlled America, the party of the Rich, for the Rich, by the Rich run on the backs of dummy evangelicals and snotty idiots.

[SusanRen]

A few years ago we had an e coli scare with the water that caused people to hoard bottled water. No water could be found anywhere. After the scare was over people were demanding that the stores take the water back. What most people didnt realize that you could boil the water for drinking. Thats what I did. Hoarding just makes matters worse.

[ThePhilosopher]

It's a prisoner's dilemma type situation. The overall situation would be better if no one hoarded, but each individual will do best if they do hoard. Since people tend to act in their own self-interest its not unexpected, just unfortunate.

[dadw5boys]

ANOTHER FIRST FOR BUSH!!!!!!!!!!!!!

FOOD RATIONING IN THE USA!!!!!!

THE MORE FREE TRADE WE HAVE THE FEWER PEOPLE GET TO EAT!!!!

[Rule Of Law]

And when the combination of no jobs, low pay, high food and energy costs drive people into the streets in protest in a way that a way we don't feel never could, then Bush will get to use those neat FEMA camps that Halliburton has been building to house the troublemakers. We are one step away from a dictatorship, but isn't American Idol on tonite?

[andyg]

WHAT, if just rice because the main producer austria had a drought, don't be a doom monger.

[Rule Of Law]

ahem--Aust­ralia...

[JScott]

The Soylent Green riot scene becomes real......

Tuesday is soylent red day....

Call in the scoops....

Soylent Green in people....

[Chiang]

Food shortage is often a fulfilled prophesy. The media reports on potential food shortages, which leads customers to purchase heavily and stockpile food, which leads to shortages.

And after the meme of food "shortages" goes into play, the media will create (out of whole cloth) the scare meme of food "rationing­."

[dadw5boys]

WELL SEVERAL MILLS HAVE CLOSED BECAUSE THEY CAN NOT GET WHEAT OR CORN TO MAKE FLOUR OR CORN MILL WITH.

ONE BAKER CAN NOT EVEN GET REY FLOUR OR RYE GRAIN TO MAKE RYE BREAD WITH AND THAT IS THE ONLY BREAD HE MAKES.

[kyeblue]

This is because farmers are holding their stocks for higher price.

[peaceandfreedom]

dad, I've googled my brains out to find this--do you have links?

[aristippe]

Run on the stores?!

[Bart]

Ah...read the article. This hardly constitutes food rationing. Alarmist nonsense.

[thegreatgiginthesky]

Don't pay attention to the signs, just dismiss them as alarmist nonsense and liberal ploys. Stupid skid marks like you will be first in line screaming bloody murder when it all comes down.

[Zeje]

Nobody's going to scream. Americans take it. And take it. And take it.

[ashabot]

Right. Just another day in Amerika.