Food prices for 2009

While looking at the prices of fertilizer, I noticed something. Even though the price of fuel may have gone down, the price of fertilizer is still high. I wonder if that is because the fertilizer that is being sold this spring was made last year? That means that the fertilizer was made when the price of fuel was still sky high.

Regardless of what fuel cost "right now", merchants have to recover the cost of making a product. And in this case, its fertilizer. Because the fertilizer is still expensive, that means that the high price of the fertilizer will be passed down to the consumer. In an already strapped economy, this is not going to help.

While looking over the Lowes website, a 40 pound bag of nitrogen fertilzier was 11.97 - more then twice what it was 2 - 3 years ago. The current prices that I am seeing on 13-13-13 is $12 and $13 for a 40 pound bag. That is twice what it cost 2 - 3 years ago.

We may not see a break in food prices until fall of 2009 or spring of 2010. And by that time the price of fuel will have gone back up. Meaning that expensive food is here to stay.

There is one group of people that high food prices hits the hardest, and that is the poor. The poor have less money to put into expensive food. Unlike the rich that have extra cash, and the flux in food prices will barley be noticed.

On a personal note - I recommend that everyone plant some kind of home garden.