food prices are only one aspect.
if one has paid any attention to "it's the economy, stupid" one will likely know "inflation" has been held in check.
if one has any inkling of "history" one know this only works for so long.
a 40-50 year "recap:"
- diversify diversify. that'll save us! (the businesses)
- oops. turns out the big guys bought stuff, fired everyone who knew anything about the business (that's the 'economy of scale' thing)
- then found out they didn't know squat about operating the business, which then floundered, so then we had
- "getting back to our core business"
- where the acquired businessi were spun off with no management skills, no money, no capital, already on rocky ground....
- heaps and piles the spin offs failed; rafts of people lost their careers.
next recession we had:
- downsize, baby, downsize.
next recession we had:
- gotta be right sized baby, yeah, right size!
next recession we had:
- fire everybody, outsource everything
which worked only because China became the USA sweat shop.
we created couple hundred thousand Chinese million-/billon- aires.
now the glitch is the outsourcing thing is not working out.
plus China, having thought there was no end to eggs laid by the golden goose....not going too well there comma either.
what's the linking circumstance?
inflation.
costs go up, businesses react. downsize, rightsize, outsource, etc.
so now that business has trimmed all the fat, gotten rid of all those non-productive areas - like R&D - nothing left for the Chinese to copy! -
where does inflation go now?
ps: it goes on the price tag. food included.