COVID's influence on inflated food prices...

Welcome to the first post of my senior year! It's been a journey, but I'm finally here and We're starting the year off with one of the most exciting courses I've ever participated in. In Journalism, we've been discussing what makes a good story, how a source is dubbed reliable or credible, and how to write a good story. Initially, we did a bit of internal research as to what it was like producing stories and gaining credibility. After that, we worked on a more external investigation where we met Julie Wernau of the Wall Street Journal. The time we spent with her and allowing us to get insight on what it's like to write reports professionally, was absolutely amazing; especially for me, someone who is an aspiring journalist. After our experience with her, we started working on this project, an investigative story. 

COVID's influence on inflated food prices

    Food prices all over the world have been rising steadily at a concerning rate because of one of the biggest viruses in history. Over the past two years, the world has been in shambles and what was the “norm”, has been at the mercy of COVID-19. Schools closed and went completely virtual, people were losing their jobs because of the decline in the economy, and people started getting and transmitting the virus. Even recreation and entertainment were halted and confined to people’s homes. There was even a point in time when necessities like toilet paper and hand sanitizer were becoming scarce and hard to get to because people were buying them up for stock. The world is still in the midst of the reign of COVID, but somehow the pieces are being picked back up. Things are opening back up with restrictions, and there is even a vaccine that is one of the most controversial topics of the 21st century. What isn’t talked about enough, though, is the impact that COVID had on food costs and availability.

    Many families have noticed a significant increase in the prices of the groceries they usually purchase. This insane change was first noticed when families went grocery shopping and were getting very little groceries for their household compared to how they usually did. The totals came out to be dangerously close to the price that families would normally pay for an extended cart of groceries. After noticing this, the masses started thinking about, what exactly is the rate at which prices have increased, for what specific reason and how will this affect the future.

    “Now, I spend about an average of 150 dollars a week to feed a family of 4, but before COVID I would be spending about 100-120 dollars a week on groceries”, said SH. She’s worried about when the prices will stop rising. “When is it going to stop? If the prices keep rising, but the quality of food isn’t rising then all I can do is worry.” According to a report by the international food policy research institute(IFPRI), food prices have risen at a rate of about 40% from May 2020. They suggest that this is due to the average level of inflation that the grocery industry sees, paired with the availability of some products, and COVID. ABC7 News produced statistics that feature data pertaining solely to COVID times and they are pretty interesting, to say the least. “As of February, the average price of fruits and vegetables is up 3.4% compared to 12 months ago. The price of meat, poultry, fish, and eggs are up 5.2%.” Both sources say that there should be no need for immediate concern as their graphed predictions of inflated food prices show the numbers leveling back out to how they were before; with room for the annual rate of inflation included.

    Until COVID starts to level itself out, everyone is just going to have to deal with the prices being higher. Like ABC7 said, the numbers should level themselves out eventually and when that happens, the quality of food, as well as the price for said food, should be proportional. It’s really unnecessary for the prices to have shot up but it’s also understandable as to why. For now, though, citizens worldwide will just have to be patient, stay informed, and be hopeful for the future.

Work CIted:

“Rising Food Prices Are a Concern but No Reason for Panic yet | IFPRI : International Food Policy Research Institute.” Ifpri.org, 2021, www.ifpri.org/blog/rising-food-prices-are-concern-no-reason-panic-yet. Accessed 23 Sept. 2021.

https://www.ifpri.org/blog/rising-food-prices-are-concern-no-reason-panic-yet

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Hope, Leah. “Food Costs Rise as Supply Chain Issues Persist amid COVID Pandemic.” ABC7 Chicago, WLS-TV, 7 Apr. 2021, abc7chicago.com/food-costs-grocery-store-prices-consumer-price-index-covid-pandemic/10495916/. Accessed 23 Sept. 2021.

https://abc7chicago.com/food-costs-grocery-store-prices-consumer-price-index-covid-pandemic/10495916/