Poll: Food costs a major worry for consumers

WASHINGTON


“I’ll drive farther, even though gas is higher, if there’s a bigger price savings at another store,” says Anna Thomas of Austin, Ind. She and her husband can handle rising food prices with planning, though it’s a pinch. “It’s hard on us, but it’s harder for families with kids,” Thomas says.

Consumer food inflation has been running at a 5.3% annual rate in the past three months, the Labor Department says. The largest price increases are white bread, up 16.3% in the past 12 months; milk, which has risen 13.3%; eggs, up 34.8%; and bananas, which are 17% higher.

Prices are being influenced by several factors, including rising U.S. exports, growing demand in nations such as China and India, poor crops in some important producing countries such as Australia, and the emergence of the biofuels industry. Economists predict a third of the U.S. corn crop will be diverted to government-subsidized ethanol production.

USA Today