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The pandemic is not the only culprit of higher food costs
The prices consumers pay for food have jumped dramatically but an ag economist says logistical issues stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic are not the only factor to blame.
David Anderson with Texas A&M University Extension tells Brownfield supply chain disruptions and labor shortages that stemmed from the pandemic certainly have not helped, but…
“Not all of those things are due to the pandemic. High feed costs are one thing contributing to less production and less profitability for farms and ranches of all types across the whole country.”
Anderson says Mother Nature is playing a big role too.
“We start looking at drought in a lot of the west and northern plains, that certainly effects some of our crop production.”
The most recent Consumer Price Index report by the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows a year over year increase of 4.6% for food overall, a 4.5% increase for food at home and a 4.7% increase for food away from home.