A new market basket survey conducted by the Missouri Farm Bureau has found that consumers in the state paid almost 10 percent more for groceries in the second quarter of 2007 than in the first.
Diane Olson, director of promotion and education for the Missouri Farm Bureau, said in a press release, "We hear a lot of conversation about food prices going up, but we actually have the documentation that they did, in fact, go up."
The survey, which tracked the price of 16 staple food items, found that prices on 12 increased during the second quarter while four were less expensive. Included in the market basket were dairy, fruits, grains, meats/poultry and vegetables.
"We found that the ticket on those 16 items this time in Missouri was $43.22, and that compares to $39.32 from the previous quarter," Ms. Olson said. "We actually have seen a $3.90 increase in just one quarter."
As to the why behind the increase, Ms. Olson said, "We hear a lot about the food versus fuel issue, but our survey really does not point to that as a cause for higher food prices. Energy prices, however, affect each step of food production from the farm level to the processing and packaging to the wholesale and to the retail level."
Discussion Questions: What do you see as the primary factors behind higher food prices? Does grocery price inflation help supermarkets and other retailers? With food prices going up and energy costs high, what product categories typically sold in food stores are most likely to take a hit?