The Inflation Diet
“The costs of production, including diesel fuel for machinery and wages for farmworkers, have gone up, and the industry has become increasingly reliant on H-2A visas to bring in foreign farmworkers, which is a more expensive labor force … ‘We can either import our food or we can import workers because it’s getting very difficult to farm in the United States with the scarcity of labor,’ said Michael Schadler, executive vice president of the Florida Tomato Exchange. ‘So if we want to keep producing food in this country, there’s got to be a way to access that workforce.'” Among the other items on your burger, the tomato is relatively innocent. It’s only 1.7% more expensive than it was last year at this time. Looking for somewhere to cast the blame? Try the bun or the avocado for starters. Meanwhile, it takes more cheddar to get cheese, a lot of lettuce to afford lettuce, and you better bring home the bacon if you plan to bring home a bacon burger. Politico: This cheeseburger explains your bigger grocery bill.
+ CNBC: Rising inflation has made it more expensive to eat at home—here’s how much grocery prices have increased.
+ Reminder: I’ll be in conversation with DJ Patil (America’s first chief data scientist) on Monday the 18th in San Francisco. Locals should come in person and out of towners can join online. (Attendees should refrain from throwing tomatoes. It’s not worth the money.)