We’re told in those usual tones of shock and horror that British grown food is likely to rise in price by about 5% this year. We will undoubtedly get one of the usual idiots taking exactly the wrong point from this – the only puzzle is which idiot.
Meat, vegetable and dairy prices are set to rise “at least” 5% in the coming months because of the UK’s extreme weather this year, research suggests.
Consultancy CEBR said 2018’s big freeze and heatwave would end up costing consumers about £7 extra per month.
OK, This being why we’ve a price system of course. There will be less of that home grown food around, we nee some method of allocating that less. The most obvious method being that those willing to pay for that domestic production get it – exactly what a price rise does for us.
The Cebr said: “Summer 2018 has been one of the warmest in living memory, with above average temperatures recorded since April and dry spells lasting more than 50 days in parts of the country.
“While this has made Britain’s weather more conducive to barbecuing, it looks set to raise the price of the food on the grill and the drink in hand.”
OK. Well? We’ve already got this sorted after all.
“The price of red meat is set to fall marginally in the short run. This is as farmers look to sell livestock earlier than normal to reduce the burden on grazing land.
“Still, in the longer run, prices are set to rise as feed availability is affected by a weak harvest,” Cebr said.
Yep, it’s all complicated stuff. Those meat prices fall before they rise – a very common event in this market. That it is all complicated being exactly why we do use the price system.
But there will undoubtedly be our idiot. Who will tell us that we must invest more in domestic production of edibles and eatables because, well, we must. Entirely failing to grasp the point that if the weather gets worse then we want to be growing less of our food here. In fact, we want to be getting our food from as many different “weather areas” as possible. So that if there is indeed this increase in variability predicted then we’ll still be able to get some food from somewhere.
That the British crops have all been hit by the weather this year is the proof that we don’t want to be getting all our food from British farming, isn’t it? You know, not too many eggs in the one basket?
Yes, the reaction should be, “Hooray! There is still enough of a functioning price system that we can react to the usual vagaries of weather and get everyone to willingly adapt!” But the point of such stories is to tell us to add the 5% increase in food prices to the amount that we could “save” by simply putting the UN in charge of enterprise and entrepreneurship, thereby to save us from scary weather. By the way, while no one likes a drought, especially those without access to tank trucks and spreaders, when has shockingly warm weather ever been bad… Read more »
I’m just surprised that they haven’t found any angle to blame Brexit for the weather. Of course, we won’t be able to import food from anywhere after Brexit … Because, of course, the EU and the mandatory WTO tariffs.
It’s also an argument for getting as much food production as possible away from the vagaries of weather and into controlled indoor environments, but that of course is “unnatural”.
Isn’t this a good thing? We keep getting told that food should be more expensive so the plebs can’t afford to eat as much of it.
Isn’t this a good thing? We keep getting told that food should be more expensive so the plebs can’t afford to eat as much of it.
It’s also an argument for getting as much food production as possible away from the vagaries of weather and into controlled indoor environments, but that of course is “unnatural”.