According to an AP article by Mary Clare Jalonick, farmers are set to plant roughly 8% less corn this growing season than they did last year, a move which may cause food prices to rocket even higher. With the increasing use of corn in ethanol based fuels, as well as the frequent use of corn in processed food products, the price of corn has nearly tripled since 2005.
Corn has become nearly essential to life as we know it in the US. If you don’t believe me, read on, and I’ll explain. In addition to the fact that the number of ethanol plants has nearly tripled since 1999, corn has become and integral component in a startling number of the products we use every day. My family discovered this first hand when our youngest child was discovered to have a corn allergy. Through trial and error and a whole lot of research, we’ve come to realize that ingredients derived from corn (corn starch, corn meal, corn flour, corn syrup, dextrose, fructose, etc) are found in the majority of processed food products found on US store shelves. In addition, corn based waxes and oils can be used to coat fruits and vegetables, milk cartons and paper plates and cups. On top of that, corn starch is found in many (if not most) pills and tablets, and corn syrup is found in many liquid medications, and corn products are also seen in many types of toiletries, including deodorant, soaps and shampoos.
If you combine the rising cost of fuel, with the potentially rising cost of corn, we could see grocery prices climbing higher, at a time when many families are already facing lay-offs, downsizing and mortgage foreclosures. One way to drive prices back down, would be to decrease demand by relying less on processed foods and starting to buy more actual ingredients. That takes extra effort and time though, so prices would probably have to soar pretty high for enough people to make that choice. In that way, it’s kind of like the problem with soaring gas prices. We’ve become nearly as attached to convenience foods as we have to the convenience of driving our own cars.
Tell us how rising food prices have impacted your family by leaving a comment. Have you made any changes to how you shop or the foods you eat to make up for these increasing prices? If so, we’d love to hear from you.
Tags: corn decreased corn production, corn in the us, food prices, rising corn prices, rising grocery prices
I read somewhere that food prices have already risen sharply in Mexico where corn tortillas are a staple. More corn for ethanol means less corn for tortillas.
I see your point and haven’t really seen this affect my family personally, but it has affected many of my patients. The rising cost of foods and gas has led many to opt for cheaper food alternatives, which really meant that they were purchasing nutrient devoid foods (or food-like substances). What my family tries to do is really make a conscious effort to reduce our “dinning out” expenditures and allocate that money to purchase quality foods. We’ve also reduced “unnecessary” trips. These small things do add up.
“One word, son – Plastics! (uh, I mean) – Corn!”
All kidding aside, while the decrease in supply does contribute to it the price increase, I think it’s the slope of the demand curve that is the main force behind the price increases. Simply put, there are more people on the planet who like to eat on a daily basis, and certain commodities like corn and rice are good foundations in many food products.
I don’t think Malthus is right here, but given the fact that the world population is increasing, the price of corn will continue to increase in the foreseeable future. The rate of the price increases when you add in things like biofuel mandates, government subsidies to NOT plant certain agricultural products, etc.
Most people are already pressed for time & unless there are strong factors (such as yours) they won’t be inclined to buy ingredients. More people will either switch to generics or move to a diet that fits their financial rather than their nutritional requirements.
I agree with both Chris and AKDocMike as far as the cheaper food alternatives go. It’s pretty depressing to stand in line at the grocery store and see what people are buying for their families to eat these days. When I get to the front of the line, the cashiers don’t even know what some of the vegetables I buy are. Um no, cabbage and lettuce are not the same thing…
Hi Rob, It was nice meeting you at EntConnect last week.
I had written about this topic previously in an article entitled, “Is Corn a Food, a Fuel, or Both?” on BiomassAuthority.com.
Corn is so cheap that it costs less than firewood to burn as a heating fuel. Farmers have endured $2/bushel corn prices for nearly a decade which doesn’t even cover the cost of producing it. Now with another ready market for corn, namely biofuels, growing corn is finally starting to make economic sense for farmers. It may be what allows them to become self-sufficient and not so dependent on taxpayer subsidies.
The annual energy budget for a human is about 1% for food and 99% for energy required for transportation, electricity, and heating fuel. We’re oblivious to this today because much of the fuel for the latter activities come from 100 million year-old biofuels in the form of natural gas, coal, and oil. Someday they’ll be gone and we’ll realize that food and fuel are really the same substance, i.e., energy that was once part of the sun and subsequently converted to biomass through photosynthesis.
We’re starting to get an inkling of it now because as traditional fossil fuels increase in price, alternatives like biofuels are getting to become economic alternatives to them and so we are starting to see the food/fuel connection.