Food securityFood prices in U.S., world set to rise as a result of drought
The U.S. Midwest is suffering the worst drought since 1956, and a total of 1,369 counties in thirty-one states across the United States have been designated for disaster aid; the prolonged drought will lead to an increase in food prices in 2013 as animal feed costs increase
U.S. officials said that the price of milk, eggs, and meat would all rise above the normal rate of inflation as the dry weather across the United States increased animal feed costs. Prices are expected to increase by between 3 percent and 4 percent in 2013, with beef prices expected to rise by up to 5 percent.
The drought, which is affecting much of the Midwest, is the worst since 1956, leading to a sharp rise in the price of corn and soybeans.
The BBC quotes Richard Volpe of the U.S. Department of Agriculture to say that “The drought is really going to hit food prices next year.” He added that the pressure on food prices would begin to build later this year.
“It’s already affecting corn and soybean prices, but then it has to work its way all the way through the system into feed prices and then animal prices, then wholesale prices and then, finally, retail prices,” he said.
The BBC notes that normal inflation for groceries in the US is about 2.8 percent per year.
As of yesterday, a total of 1,369 counties in thirty-one states across the United States have been designated for disaster aid. The USDA said that two-thirds of the United States was now in mild or extreme drought.
The rising prices in the United States will likely have a cascading impact in other countries as well, as the United States is the world’s largest exporter of corn, soybeans, and wheat.
