If you thought food prices were out of control where you live, just look at the latest UK food numbers. It’s a wonder anybody can still afford to eat there at all! What the heck is going on? And what is the government going to do to stave off mass starvation among those who are most vulnerable?
UK food prices skyrocket: Millions in danger of starvation…
It’s not luxury goods that are sending British food prices into the stratosphere. Breakfast Porridge Oats and Skimmed Milk are among the products hardest hit!
How hard? Plain old Cheddar Cheese is on track to increase 80 percent by the end of 2023. And take a gander at the increases in other day-to-day foods per the latest 3-month supermarket survey:
“Our latest supermarket food and drink tracker paints a bleak picture for the millions of households already skipping meals of how inflation is impacting prices on supermarket shelves, with the poorest once again feeling the brunt of the cost of living crisis,” Sue Davies, the head of food policy at Which?, said.
“While the whole food chain affects prices, supermarkets have the power to do more to support people who are struggling, including ensuring everyone has easy access to basic, affordable food ranges at a store near them, particularly in areas where people are most in need.”
Most vulnerable hardest hit
Predictably, shadow cabinet ministers from Britain’s federal opposition parties have been quick to comment that the government hasn’t done enough to keep food prices down, in what might be called a reasonable range. And it appears the story will be the same in most western democracies. Whereas economists predicted last fall that food prices were expected to plateau if not start to decline by the end of this coming summer, the latest predictions everywhere are hazy, simply saying, “We hope so…”
Meanwhile, what are average folks eating?
Quick answer: Whatever the food banks have in stock. And the Food Bank have never been under such pressure to keep the most vulnerable families fed. (See photo, top of page)
But consider that some folks in the UK are reporting having nothing at all to eat some days. And others report they’re regularly skipping meals to ‘come out even’ at the end of the month. The situation is similar in may other places, But nowhere is it as extreme – as desperate – as in the UK. and consider that what’s happening in the UK this year could be happening where you or I live by this time next.
Up against the wall
A growing number of UK working class families are up against a financial wall, and nobody seems to know which way to turn. The old saying goes: “Drastic times demand drastic action.” But what is that going to be? Who will be the one to take it? And how soon is it likely to come?
I’ll leave the last word to my dear, wise, ancient mother, who unwittingly channeled Charlie Bunker and the All In The Family theme song: “We could use a man like Winston Churchill again!”
~ Maggie J.