Food inflation.... lets talk bread.
I'm not sure about you, but every time I go to the store, the price of food seems to rise. I'm not talking every month or every couple of months either, recently it has literally been every visit. A couple of weeks ago I nipped to grab a few bits and got our usual loaf which was 85p, visiting the following week I picked up the exact same loaf at £1.15 - a 35% increase in literal days!
Now I know we need to adjust prices accordingly but there's something not sitting right about how extortionate these increases are, and how they're just not stopping.
We are in a very, very fortunate position to be able to get our necessities with the increases along the way, but it's going to get to a point where it's absolutely unachievable. I daren't even comprehend how difficult it is for people to afford the bare basics in this current economic climate if they're already struggling financially, especially families in poverty. It's just beggars' belief that in a developed country, people are having to decide whether they heat or eat.
Have you noticed any particular increases recently that just seem astronomical? Running a business, I know that costs and prices run deeper than the pounds and pence on a sticker, but I'm also well aware of the cost of wholesale ingredients to make said items and it just isn't making sense to me where this inflation is coming from. Not this level of it.
Granted there have been numerous global supply chain issues because of the way the world is at the moment - a conversation for another time - but surely now is the time to explore using our own resources instead of importing what we are capable of growing and producing in this country, when getting it from elsewhere isn't financially feasible for so many.
It seems people are being dragged down into poverty in this country more and more every day. Food shouldn't be a luxury, especially the basics. We should all have access to what we need to survive without worrying we have to sacrifice staying warm or sheltered to do so.
Granted there are cheaper options for people to buy, but these are usually riddled in additives and artificial ingredients ... is someone with less money less deserving of nutritious and healthy foods? I don't think so, and I'm sure you don't either. I like to think if I was ever in a position where I was struggling to pay for our food shop that I would still have access to the right food to fuel my body, but truth be told, right now I don't think I would.
I've noticed the price of fruit has gone through the roof too - a small punnet of grapes being almost double what they cost last year, the cheapest option for strawberries being over £3 (when looking at the price/kg). There was once a time I could do a full weekly shop and have sufficient, with five fruit and veg a day, for £20-30.
I'm not sure what the answer is here though, I'm not a politician (nor do I want to be one!). What do you think?